UC-NRLF 


W  h  e^ 


I 


THE  FISHES  OF 


The  East  Atlantic  Coast, 


THAT   ARE 


CAUGHT  WITH  HOOK  AND  LINE, 

By  LOUIS  0.  YAN  DOREK. 


INCLUDING 


The  Fishes  of  the  East  Coast 


— OF 


E^LORID^, 


By  SAMUEL  C.  CLARKE.-^    ^Vpf'''^ 


ILLUSTRATED. 


NEW  YORK: 

The  American  Angler, 
1884. 


3 


Entered,  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1884,  by 

WILLIAM    C.    HARRIS, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 


PUBLISHEE'S  AMOUNCEMENT. 


The  within  pages  contain  the  illustrated  papers  of  Mr.  Louis  O. 
Van  Doren,  Mr.  Samuel  C.  Clarke,  and  Dr.  C.  J.  Kenworthy,  "Al 
Fresco,"  that  have  appeared  from  time  to  time  in  the  columns  of 
The  American  Angler.  They  treat  of  all  the  fishes  of  the  Atlantic 
Coast  that  are  of  interest  to  the  rod  and  line  fisherman,  and  in  con- 
nection with  the  profuse  illustrations  form  the  most  practical  and 
comprehensive  treatise  on  our  salt  water  fishes,  that  has  been 
published. 


445508 


COISTTENTS, 


CHAPTER   I. 
The  Stbipkd  Bass— Rockfish 9 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Bluefish 16 

CHAPTER   III. 
The  Wkakfish— Squeteauqe 22 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  Shbepshead 29 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Kingfish 32 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Bonito 36 

CHAPTER  VII. 
The  Black  Dbum 40 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
The  Spanish  Mackerel 45 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Blackfish 49 

CHAPTER  X. 
The  Floundeb 54 

CHAPTER  XI. 
The  Sea  Bass '. 59 

CHAPTER  XII. 
The  Bebgall 63 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
The  Tomcod. 67 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Thb  Codfish 71 

CHAPTER  XV. 
The  Haddock 75 


CHAPTEK  XVI. 
The  Menhaden 79 

CHAPTEK  XVII. 

The  Lafayette  ob  Spot 85 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
The  Snapping  Mackerel 86 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
The  Shad ; 88 

CHAPTER   XX. 
The  Crab  and  The  Lobster 93 

THE  FISHES  OF  THE  EAST  FLORIDA  COAST. 

CHAPTER   I. 

The  Species  of  Fishes  found  on  the  East  Florida  Coast 99 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Channel  Bass 107 

CHAPTER    III. 
The  Salt  Water  Trout— Southern  Weakfish 113 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Red  Grouper 117 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  Rock  Grouper 122 

The  Pompano 125 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Cavalli  or  Crevalle 127 

The  Mangrove  Snapper 128 

The  Crab  Eater  or  Sergeant  Fish 132 

CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Ladyfish  or  Bone  Fish 133 

The  Jewfish 134 

The  Tarpum  or  Tarpon 137 

CHAPTER  Vm. 

The  Drum 141 

The  Hogfish — Pigfish 142 

The  Sailor's  Choicb 142 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Salt  Water  Catfish 145 

The  Conger  Eel 145 

The  Mullet 146 

The  Yellow  Tail— Silver  Pkboh 149 


VUl 

CHAPTER  X. 

The  Sharks 153 

The  Sawfish 156 

CHAPTER  XI. 
The  Rays 157 

CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Tabpum.      By  Al  Fresco 160 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  FISHING  GROUNDS  OF  FLORIDA. 

Tackle  and  Lubes.      By  Dr.  C.  J.  Kenworthy — Al  Fresco 171 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 

The  Bluefish 17 

The  Weakfish 23 

The  Sheepshead .j 26 

The  Kingfish 33 

The  Bonito 37 

The  Black  Drum 41 

The  Spanish  Mackerel 47 

The  Blackfish 50 

The  Flounder .....; 55 

The  Sea  Bass 60 

The  Beroall 64 

The  Tomcod 69 

The  Codfish 73 

The  Haddock 76 

The  Menhaden 81 

The  Lafayette  or  Spot 84 

The  Shad 88 

The  Tarpum 101 

The  Channel  Bass 108 

The  Salt  Water  Trout 115 

The  Red  Grouper 119 

The  Pompano 123 

The  Mangrove  Snapper 129 

The  Ladyfish 135 

The  Hogfish 143 

The  Salt  Water  Catfish 147 

The  Whitb  ob  Silver  Mullet 151 


THE  FISHES  OF  THE  EAST  ATLANTIC  COAST. 


CHAPTER  I. 


The  Striped  Bass. — Rockfish. — Roccus  lineaius. — Gill. 


No  similiar  stretch  of  coast  in  the  world  is  as  plentifully  supplied 
with  fish  life  as  the  eastern  seaboard  of  the  United  States.  From 
the  tepid  waters  of  Florida,  all  along  up  to  the  icy  waves  washing 
the  Banks,  myriads  of  fish  exist,  either  to  give  pleasure  to  the 
angler  or  profit  to  the  fisherman.  At  the  head  of  the  list  stands  the 
striped  bass.  Every  wielder  of  the  rod  would  put  him  there  will- 
ingly enough,  even  if  the  authority  of  Genio  C.  Scott  and  Frank 
Forester  did  not  sanction  it.  The  former  is  more  enthusiastic  over 
its  many  virtues  as  a  game  fish  than  he.  is  over  any  other  creature 
that  wears  scales,  either  of  the  fresh  or  salt  waters.  The  latter  ranks 
the  striped  bass  second  only  to  the  salmon,  dividing  the  honors  per- 
il aps  with  the  black  bass  of  the  St.  Lawrence. 

The  striped  bass — Jioccus  lineatus — Gill,  is  known  south  of  New 
York  as  the  rock-fish,  from  its  habit,  probably,  of  swimming  among 
the  boulders  of  a  rapid  tide-way,  nosing  about  for  some  dainty  morsel 
with  which  to  satisfy  his  appetite.  To  the  ordinary  gazer  of  the 
stalls,  the  striped  bass  would  appear  as  a  silvery  fish  marked  with 
lateral  black  lines  and  possessed  of  a  capacious  mouth  well  supplied 
with  teeth;  but  such  a  description  will  not  answer  the  requirements 
of  the  scientific  as  well  as  practical  angler  of  to-day. 

The  body  of  the  striped  bass  is  long  and  symmetrical,  slightly 
humped  over  the  shoulder,  and  marked  horizontally  by  seven  or 


10  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

<  ight  narrow  black  lines,  growing  smaller  as  they  reacli^tbe  belly. 
'Die  width  of  the  body  is  two-sevenths  of  its  length,  whieli  is  about 
four  times  the  length  of  the  head.  The  mouth  is  extraordinarily 
large,  and  besides  the  usual  teeth  of  the  inside  rim  there  are  two 
patches  on  the  tongue.  The  eye  is  large  and  well  rounded,  giving 
an  index  of  the  bold  nature  of  the  fish.  The  color  of  the  striped 
bass  IS  white  underneath,  merging  to  a  silvery  aspect,  then  to  an 
olive  hue,  and  over  the  dorsal  giving  place  to  a  metallic  blue.  There 
are  two  dorsal  fins,  the  first  has  nine  spines,  sharp  and  strong;  the 
second  has  one  spine  and  twelve  soft  rays.  The  anal  fin,  which  is 
moderately  large,  has  three  spines  and  eleven  soft  rays. 

The  striped  bass  varies  in  size  from  eight-inch  little  fellows  up  to 
monsters  of  one  hundred  pounds.  The  greed  of  all  sizes  is,  however, 
the  same.  Those  of  three  and  four  pounds  run  in  company,  and 
Jience  are  popularly  known  as  "school  bass;"  l^hese  it  is  that  give 
such  prime  sport  to  fishermen  in  New  York  waters,  but  let  no  one 
imagine  on  this  account  that  big  bass  are  unknown  to  their  rods. 
One  of  a  hundred  pounds  is  on  record  that  "yielded  recreant"  to  the 
a'od  of  an  old  troller  accustomed  to  practice  his  art  in  the  turbulent 
waters  of  Hell -Gate. 

The  "run,"  as  it  is  called,  of  bass  commences  in  the  spring  months, 
and  about  the  tenth  of  June  the  large  ones  begin  to  reat-h  our  mar- 
kets. The  capture  of  "school  bass"  continues  throughout  the  sum- 
mer, and  about  the  end  of  August  the  celebrated  surf -fishing  comes 
in  vogue.  The  striped  bass  runs  up  the  estuaries  and  rivers  to  de- 
posit its  spawn,  and  sometimes  ascends  even  to  fresh  water.  This 
annual  movement  of  the  bass  commences  in  the  spring,  and  fishing 
is  good  until  November. 

As  beseems  such  a  noble  fish,  the  striped  bass  reaches  perfection 
of  size  and  courage  in  the  midst  of  strong,  sweeping  tides,  in  the 
olear,  deep  waters  of  the  Sound,  and  along  the  rugged  rocky  beaches 
of  the  ocean  side  of  Long  Island  and  Martha's  Vineyard,  Such 
hunting  grounds  could  only  produce  such  a  fish  as  the  bass,  which 
indeed  shows  the  effect  of  their  surroundings  in  his  shape  and  move- 
.ments.  His  hard,  muscular,  well-rounded  body,  his  large,  bright  eye 
and  rapacious-looking  mouth,  warrant  us  in  applying  to  him  Prank 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  11 

Forester's  expressive  sentence:  "The  striped  bass  is  the  boldest, 
bravest,  strongest  and  most  active  fish  that  visits  the  waters  of  tlu' 
midland  States." 

Every  extensive  work  on  angling  in  American  waters  contains  a 
reference  to  the  striped  bass  fishing  to  be  enjoyed  in  the  water? 
about  Manhattan  Island.  The  great  depth  of  water  r  nd  the  narrow 
rock-strewn  channels  combine  to  form  a  very  paradise  for  the  bass, 
who  seems  to  find  the  greatest  enjoyment  of  his  existence  in  darting 
through  the  Hell-Gate  mill-race  and  among  the  rapid  tide-ways  of 
the  lower  Sound.  Twenty  years  ago  the  striped  bass  fifihing  in  New 
York  Harbor  was  simply  superb  ;  every  flood  tide  would  see  the 
capture  of  hundreds  of  bass  in  their  season.  There  was  one  place  in 
particular,  the  mention  of  which  will  perhaps  recall  to  many  an  old- 
time  angler  some  of  his  fishing  triumphs — "  The  Willows,"  as  it  was 
termed.  This  famous  spot  in  the  Harlem  Kills  was  often  so  encircled 
by  row  boats  that  any  late  arrival  on  the  ground  was  forced  to  push 
his  boat  stern  foremost  into  the  crowded  ring. 

As  New  York  waters  were  and  still  are  the  center  of  striped  bass 
fishing,  I  will  first  describe  the  methods  of  fishing  here  and  the  tackle 
and  baits  used.  As  the  monster  fish  of  former  days  are  not  now 
looked  for,  the  New  York  fisherman  fixes  his  rod  and  line  for  bass 
under  ten  pounds. 

The  kind  of  fishing  most  popular  in  our  waters  is  "  trolling."  By 
some  the  rod  is  used,  but  of  tener  we  see  a  solitary  boatman  leisurely 
rowing  and  holding  a  long  and  heavy  line  in  his  teeth  (a  sure  sign,  I 
take  it,  that  they  are  his  own).  How  anyone's  jaws  can  stand  such 
a  strain  I  do  not  know;  no  doubt,  though,  enthusiasm  gives  them 
three-fold  strength.  I  have  seen  such  a  lone  fisherman  rowing  along 
with  the  stillness  and  imperturbable  gravity  of  a  Sphnix,  suddenly 
drop  his  oars,  take  the  wet  line  from  between  his  teeth  and  after  a 
struggle  bring  to  his  basket  a  three  or  four-pound  striped  bass. 
Imagine  what  a  tooth-pulling  strike  such  a  fish  must  have  made. 

Trolling  for  bass  in  the  channels  of  New  York  Harbor  is  more 
work  than  sport,  and  requires  too  little  skill  to  suit  the  accustomed 
wielder  of  the  fly-rod.  .  It  is  the  way  though  by  which  most  of  the 
large  fish  are  taken,  and   therefore  is  worthy  of  notice.     The  best 


12  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

Stage  of  the  tide  for  this  mode  of  fishing  is  during  the  last  two  hours 
of  the  flood.  As  to  tackle,  some  use  short  rods,  some  long  rods  and 
some,  as  I  have  said,  no  rods  at  all.  The  rod,  however,  should  be 
strong  and  supple  ;  all  sellers  of  fishing  tackle  have  assortments  of 
striped  bass  rods  from  which  the  angler  can  easily  get  one  meeting 
his  ideal  of  what  a  rod  should  be.  The  line,  usually  of  linen,  should 
be  at  least  two  hundred  feet  long.  The  sinker  gauged  according  to 
the  force  of  the  water,  must  keep  the  line  about  four  feet  from  the 
bottom.  A  leader  is  always  used,  made  of  double  gut  and  arranged 
to  carry  one  or  two  hooks.  This  leader  is  generally  about  four  feet 
long  ;  if  one  hook  is  used  it  may  be  shortened  ;  if  two  hooks,  then 
two  pieces  of  gut  are  tied  below  the  sinker,  one  being  the  first 
length  mentioned,  the  other  two  feet  in  length.  What  is  very  es- 
sential is  that  the  tyings  should  be  as  neatly  made  as  possible,  as 
the  striped  bass  is  a  wary  and  shy  fellow.  Now,  as  to  bait,  shedder 
crab  is  tempting  but  not  serviceable,  the  swift  current' gradually 
washing  it  from  the  hooks.  A  better  bait  is  the  long  red  sand  worm 
looped  on  the  hook  so  as  to  writhe  with  facility,  thus  as  any  one  can 
see,  making  a  most  killing  lure.  These  worms  are  found  often  nine 
inches  long  and  as  thick  as  the  little  finger.  The  tail  of  the  squid 
is  frequently  used  in  trolling  for  large  bass  with  heavy  tackle.  The 
seasons  for  trolling  are  June,  July  and  August,  and  the  places  most 
frequented  by  bass  are  along  the  sedge-covered  banks,  aboat  sunken 
meadows  and  in  swift  race-ways  of  the  tides. 

The  next  general  Jtmd  of  bass  fishing  is  that  styled  still  fishing. 
Let  skill  and  fancy  select  the  reel  accurately  balanced,  the  rod  strong 
and  yielding,  bright  polished  guides,  large  enough  to  let  the  line  run 
smoothly,  and  an  evenly  twisted  line.  The  angler  will  need  these 
qualities  in  his  tackle,  for  long  casts  are  essential  to  successful  still 
fishing.  The  leader  is  the  same  as  is  used  in  trolling,  joined  to  the 
line  by  a  swivel  sinker  and  holding  two  "flatted  Kirbys,"  size  0-9, 
this  being  in  my  estimation  about  the  proper  hook  for  still  fishing 
for  school-bass.  The  best  bait  is  the  shedder  crab,  next  the  shedder 
lobster,  and  last  but  almost  equal  in  efficiency  to  the  other  two,  the 
»and  worm. 

The  striped  bass,  like  its  brother  the  fresh  water  str  ped  bass,  will 


FISHES    OF   THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  13 

take  the  fly  eagerly,  and  in  doing  so  w  ill  give  more  excitement,  per- 
haps, than  genuine  pleasure  to  tlie  enthusiastic  fly-caster  who  is  un- 
willing to  place  any  fish  under  the  headmg  Game,  before  he  has  as- 
sured himself  that  the  member  of  the  finny  tribe  in  question  will 
seize  a  surface  lure  in  the  sh2k,pe  of  an  artificial  fly. 

In  all  salt  water  fishing,  with  hardly  an  exception,  the  hours  when 
the  tide  is  rising  afford  the  best  scoring  time,  and  this  is  invariably 
true  in  striped  bass  fishing.  In  fly  fishing  for  the  bass  the  top  of  tLe 
flood  is  the  right  time,  a  little  before  the  tide  will  turn.  The  angler 
may  stand  in  the  stern  of  the  boat  while  the  boatman  rows  him 
about  over  the  flooded  flats  and  still  waters  near  the  shores.  A  large 
fly  must  be  used,  a  red  ibis  or  a  red  and  white  one,  in  fact  any  of 
those  bright  ones  used  in  salmon  fishing.  It  will  sometimes  be  well  to 
let  the  fly  sink  beneath  the  surface  six  or  eight  inches.  All  of  the 
above  methods  of  fishing  are  tame  and  commonplace  compared  with 
that  acme  of  all  angling  on  the  Atlantic  coast — surf  fishing  for  the 
striped  bass.  It  is  also  called  "  chumming,"  but  the  "  chumming" 
part  of  the  sport  is  not  performed  by  the  angler.  This  surf  fishing 
is  limited  to  a  stretch  of  our  Eastern  coast,  whose  northern  limit  is 
Oape  Cod  and  whose  southern  is  a  little  below  Montauk  Point. 
The  description  of  this  widely  celebrated  branch  of  salt  water  fish- 
ing, though  it  is  known  perhaps  to  every  angler,  could  not  well  be 
omitted  in  anything  written  about  the  striped  bass,  it  is  such  mag- 
nificent use  of  skill  and  tackle,  such  splendid  practice  for  the 
muscles. 

Running  out  from  the  shore,  right  in  the  midst  of  the  rolling  surf 
and  over  the  great  boulders,  a  light  frame  work  or  "bridge  "of 
wood  is  built.  It  terminates  in  a  small  platform  affording  just  room 
enough  for  the  fisherman  and  his  attendant.  I  mentioned  above 
the  necessity  for  the  best  of  tackle.  Now  the  need  is  doubled. 
The  rod  is  nine  or  ten  feet  long  (each  angler  is  sure  to  take  the 
length  he  can  handle  best) ;  the  reel,  a  triple  multiplier  of  largest 
size,  must  be  most  beautifully  and  perfectly  balanced  in  its  move- 
ments ;  the  line,  some  four  hundred  feet  long,  is  of  the  best  linen 
make.  All  these  things  must  be  well  looked  to,  for  they  are  indis- 
pensable  in  casting.     He  who   makef    the  longest  casts,  takes  the 


14  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

most   and   largest  fish.     To   be   successful  in  any  degree  the  baits 
must  be  shot  seaward  over  one  hundred  feet. 

There  are  two  general  methods  of  casting — the  "  overhand  "  and 
the  "  underhand."  These  terras  have  reference  to  the  way  the  rod 
is  held  in  casting,  either  over  or  under  the  level  of  the  arm. 

Before  the  angler  launches  his  bait  on  their  long  trip  through  the 
air,  the  "chummer"  has  cut  up  into  pieces  enough  menhaden  to  fill 
a  bushel  basket,,  and  with  a  long  sweep  of  his  arm  is  scattering  the 
bits  of  fish  over  the  waves.  Besides  the  menhaden  being  a  favorite 
side-dish  of  our  friend  the  bass,  the  oil  of  the  fish  covers  the  water 
for  some  distance  out.  This  film  whets  the  appetite  of  the  striped 
bass,  tempting  him  further  in,  till  suddenly  a  great  piece  of  crab  or 
an  entire  lobster's  tail  splashes  down  right  in  front  of  his  open 
jaws.  It  is  no  strain  on  any  one's  imagination  even  though  he  has 
never  "been  there,"  to  try  to  picture  what  a  gloriously  exciting  and 
hard-fought  struggle  there  will  be  before  his  hungry  lordship  is 
brought  within  the  reach  of  the  gaff.  The  splendid  fish,  thoroughly 
game,  full  of  the  rush  and  exhilerating  life  of  the  salt  waves,  his 
firm  muscles  trained  by  many  tussles  with  the  boisterous  tides,  is 
able  to  make  a  fight  for  life  exceeding  in  length  and  fierceness  that 
of  any  other  game  fish  of  our  continent.  The  angler,  on  his  frail 
platform,  barely  giving  him  space  for  action,  out  over  the  combing 
breakers  that  now  and  again  drench  him  with  spray,  is  also  spurred 
by  the  excitement  of  the  moment  and  its  surroundings  to  use  his  ut- 
most skill  and  art.  The  combined  result  is  what  the  salt  water  fish- 
erman claims  the  right  of  terming  the  high  water  mark  of  all  angling. 
In  order  to  enjoy  this  noble  sport  where  the  fish  has  a  better 
chance  of  escaping  than  the  angler  has  of  catching  him,  safe  from 
intrusion,  and  also  that  they  may  have  some  prospect  of  success, 
parties  of  gentlemen  have  formed  clubs  and  purchased  parts  of  the 
coast  line  and  among  these  fishermen  an  earnest  rivalry  exists  for  the 
proud  possession  of  the  title  of  "  high-line,"  given  to  him  who  takes 
the  largest  fish  or  the  greatest  number. 

Perhaps  some  over-fastidious  angler  will  object  that  this  surf -fish- 
ing is  a  mere  contest  between  heavy  tackle  and  brute  strength,  but 
the  objection  will  not   hold  good,  for  in  no  branch  of  the  angler's 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  15» 

art  is  there  such  oj^portunity  given  for  work  of  head  and  hand  as  m. 
landing  a  great  striped  bass  whose  weight  is  out  of  all  proportion  to* 
the  tackle  used  in  his  capture.    * 

The  time  of  year  when  anglers  can  most  enjoy  this  surf-fishing  is; 
in  the  months  of  August  and  September;  the  bait  they  use  is  the 
oily  menhaden,  the  shedder  crab,  and  as  something  new,  the  meat 
stripped  from  the  tad  of  the  lobster.  The  places  they  go  to  are 
Montauk  Point  and  its  vicinity,  Block  Island,  Martha's  Vineyard, 
the  Elizabeth  Islands,  and  the  rocky  shores  of  Connecticut  and  Mas- 
sachusetts. 

For  smaller  bass  any  of  the  bays  of  South  Long  Island,  along  the 
New  Jersey  coast,  the  pleasant  inlets  of  the  river  at  the  Sound, 
and  the  ITarlem  River  at  Kingsbridge,  the  East  River  at  Hell-Gate, 
at  Harlem  Kills,  the  North  River  up  to  fresh  water,  are  good 
grounds.  The  tackle  for  this  lighter  fishing  I  have  already  de- 
scribed under  "  trolling."  The  baits  are  shedder  crab,  sand- worms- 
and  shedder  lobster. 

I  have  touched  here  and  there  upon  the  virtues  of  the  striped  bass- 
as  a  game  fish.  I  will  add  another  to  that  long  list  by  mentioning 
the  splendid  flavor  of  the  fish  when  rightly  served.  By  all  means 
then,  ye  angler  who  like  fish  cooked  as  well  as  (I  will  not  say — bet- 
ter than)  fi.sh  alive,  let  the  striped  bass  of  four  pounds  weight  be^ 
gashed  and  broiled,  served  on  a  hot  dish,  sprinkled  with  a  mere- 
dash  of  red  pepper  and  buttered  well,  and  then  eaten  with  the  ad- 
dition of  a  few  drops  pressed  from  the  half  of  a  smooth-skinned 
lemon.  Truly  you  \v\\\  enjoy  a  taste  putting  the  fried  Saddle  Rock 
to  shame,  and  making  the  canvass-backed  duck  hide  his  diminished 
head. 


CHAPTEK  II. 


The  Bluefish. — Famatomus  saUatrix. — Gill. 


The  bluefish,  at  once  the  most  destructive  a  id  oiiooi  the  most  im- 
portant, from  an  economic  point  of  view,  of  ull  coast  fishes,  is  next 
on  the  list  of  gamy  denizens  of   the  sea. 

The  bluefish  has  not  always  been  taken  on  the  North  Atlantic 
seaboard  of  the  United  States,  but  made  his  appearance  there  for  the 
first  time  during  the  first  decade  of  the  century.  But  since  that  mi- 
gration from  more  Southern  waters,  vast  schools  of  bluefish  have 
swept  along  the  coast  of  the  Atlantic  States  year  after  year,  without 
a  single  season  being  omitted.  It  is  thought  by  many  that  this  rapa- 
cious foreigner  came  from  the  warm  seas  surrounding  the  West 
Indies.  Be  that  as  it  may,  he  certainly  has  the  bloodthirsty  habits 
and  murderous  ways  of  the  Spanish  buccaneers,  who  once  infested 
those  islands. 

The  bluefish  in  his  annual  visits,  as  some  one  has  recently  esti- 
mated, slaughters  billions  of  the  smaller  fishes,  killing  in  mere  wan- 
tonness. He  drives  before  him  immense  schools  of  the  mossbunkers, 
and  anon  dashes  into  their  midst,  cutting  right  and  left  with  his 
sharp  teeth.  They  do  not  eat  one-tenth  of  what  they  slay,  but  for 
the  most  part  take  one  round,  clean  bite  out  of  each  victim,  leaving 
their  bodies  to  float  on  the  waves,  "  a  prey  to  the  birds  that  sail  in 
the  air."  It  is  this  fact  that  betrays  the  whereabouts  of  the  bluefish; 
for  the  loiig-winged  gulls  hover  above  every  school  of  them,  picking 
ip  the  fioatmg  crumbs  in  the  shape  of  dead  fish  from  the  bluefishes' 
cable.     The  fishermen  on  shore  watch  till  they  see  the  gulls  sailing 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  19- 

and  dipping,  and  then  know  exactly  where  the  bluefish  are  at  their 
murderous  work. 

The  run  of  these  fish  commences  in  early  spring,  and  lasts  through 
the  whole  summer  and  fall,  but  in  winter  the  fish  disappear. 

The  appearance  of  the  bluefish  is  rakish,  as  beseems  the  pirate  of 
the  ocean.  His  body  is  bounded  by  graceful  curved  lines  ;  the  fins 
are  small,  considering  the  great  strength  and  speed  of  the  fish,  and 
look  when  spread  out  as  if  they  had  been  trimmed.  The  tail  is 
forked  ;  the  first  dorsal  fin  has  seven  rays,  and  is  much  smaller  than 
the  second,  which  has  twenty-five  rays.  The  ventral  fin  is  small, 
and  has  five  rays.  The  anal  fin  is  larger,  and  about  the  same  size  as 
the  second  dorsal.  The  operculi,  or  gill  covers,  are  covered  with 
scales  ;  the  mouth  is  very  large  and  its  edges  are  full  of  very  sharp 
teeth,  good  to  tear  and  cut  (hence  one  of  its  scientific  names — tem- 
nodon).  The  head  is  more  than  one-fourth  the  length  of  the  body. 
The  whole  fish  in  form  is  beautiful  and  symmetrical.  The  color  m 
white,  or  greenish  white  on  the  belly,  gradually  deepening  into  a 
steel  blue  as  it  nears  the  dorsal  fin. 

Of  the  various  ways  of  taking  the  bluefish  I  will  first  describe  the 
most  important  to  all  classes  of  fishermen — trolling  with  hand  lines. 
There  are  some  who  think  no  true  angler  will  take  aught  but  the 
salmon  or  the  black  bass  ;  there  are  others  who  limit  the  angler's 
skill  to  casting  the  artificial  fiy  ;  there 'are  many  more  who  will  allow 
him  no  "gentlemanly"  method  of  fishing  save  with  the  rod.  I  think 
they  are  mistaken  as  well  as  selfish.  I  would  give  as  a  truer  defin- 
ition of  the  art :  fishmg  of  every  kind  requiring  skill  and  carried  on 
humanely  and  for  enjoyment.  If,  then,  the  "  gentleman  angler  "  will 
not  feel  less  of  the  gentleman  while  trolling,  he  may  enjoy  the  de- 
lightful sport  in  the  following  way  : 

Have  a  staunch  fast-sailing  catboat  or  sloop,  one  that   will   "  turn 
on  a  shilling,"  as  the  phrase  goes,  and  a  good-natured  old  sea-dog  to 
handle  it.     In  a  good  breeze  he  will  make  his  craft  tack  to  and  fro_ 
through  the  shoal  of  bluefish,  jamming  the  helm  hard  down  and  cans 
ing  her  to  spin  round  witnout  losing  headway. 

The  next  requisite  is  a  good  stout  line,  generally  of  cotton,  two 
or  three  hundred  feet  long,  carrying  a  heavy  sinker,  and  below  this 


20  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

a  trolling  spoon  of  ivory,  bone  or  metal.  A  trolling  sinker  is  made 
sometimes  with  a  large  hook  set  in  the  lead.  Trolling  spoons  are  of 
great  variety,  very  costly  ones  being  made  of  silver  and  pearl.  The 
trolling  sinker  or  spoon  must  be  attached  to  the  line  by  a  yard 
length  of  wire  snell,  or  the  two  will  soon  part  connection,  aided  by 
the  sharp  teeth  of  the  bluefish. 

To  protect  the  hands  of  the  angler,  woollen  gloves  are  often  de- 
sirable. When  the  bluefish  strikes  (fiercely,  he  does,  too,)  and  feels 
the  hook,  he  begins  a  famous  fight,  sometimes  running  deep,  then 
breaking  on  the  surface,  and  sometimes  surging  from  side  to  side. 
A  well-known  trick  of  his  is  to  start  off  at  lightning  speed  and  over- 
run the  hooks. 

Fish  caught  by  trolling  run  from  four  to  fifteen  pounds  in  weight, 
and  this  method  of  fishing  gives  great  enjoyment.  Overhead  the 
blue  sky  and  soaring  gulls  ;  the  sparkling  waters  all  about ;  the 
swift  motion  of  the  boat  and  the  excitement  o^  the  caj)ture,  make 
the  hours  pass  most  delightfully. 

Another  good  way  of  taking  the  bluefish  is  by  chumming.  Moss 
bunkers  are  chopped  fine,  as  in  striped  bass  fishing,  and  thrown  upon 
the  water.  The  rod  must  have  large  free  guides,  the  reel  be  free  run 
ning  aad  of  fine  workmanship,  and  the  swivel  sinker  light.  The 
bait,  a  piece  of  menhaden  or  crab,  is  cast  out  in  the  midst  of  the 
chum-bait  and  then  reeled  up  ;  and  be  it  remembered,  that  always 
in  bluefishing  the  hooks  must  be  fastened  to  the  line  by  a  piece  of 
fine  wire  or  gimp  pnell. 

The  best  stage  of  the  tide  for  bluefishing  is  the  rising  tide  and 
the  slack  water  at  the  ebb  and  flood. 

The  bluefish  will  take  the  fly  and  often  keep  it.  If  you  have  any 
«o  bestow,  he  prefers  the  large  ones,  of  bright  and  assorted  colors. 

Where  to  enjoy  bluefishing  is  easily  told.  In  the  Ocean  off  Cane 
May,  at  Long  Branch,  and  all  along  the  coast  of  New  Jersey.  Ex- 
cellent fishing  is  enjoyed  every  season  at  Barnegat  and  Atlantic  City, 
at  Fire  Island  and  on  the  whole  stretch  of  the  Ocean  side  of  Long 
Island.  The  natural  food  of  the  bluefish  is  the  mossbunker,  and  un- 
less something  in  the  shape  of  legislative  action  is  done  to  restrict 
the  taking  of  these  fish  within  a  certain  period,  the  mossbunker  wiK 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  21 

be  almost  annihilated,  and  the  attraction  which  draws  the  bluefish  to 
our  shores  will  be  a  thing  of  the  past.  This  is  a  matter  not  only  of 
much  concern  to  the  angler,  but  vastly  more  important  to  the  poor 
of  our  great  seaboard  cities. 


CHAPTER  III. 


The  Weakfish. —  Cynoscion  regalit<.-^GiU. 


The  fish  we  now  treat  of  is  by  far  the  most  beautiful  specimen 
of  the  inhabitants  of  the  sea  which  the  salt  water  angler  has  the 
happy  fortune  of  capturing.  Though  he  cannot  lay  claim  to  the 
game  qualities  of  the  striped  bass,  upon  his  scales  shine  each  of  the 
seven  cardinal  hues. 

The  general  color  of  the  weakfish,  or  as  the  Indians  called  him,  the 
squeteague,  is  blue,  lightening  on  the  under  parts.  On  the  back 
and  sides  are  spots  arranged  in  a  transverse  order.  The  color  of  the 
top  of  the  head  is  greenish  blue;  the  inside  of  the  mouth  yellow; 
the  gill  covers  lustrous  silver;  on  the  lower  jaw  there  is  a  salmon 
tint.  The  fins  also  are  of  different  coloration;  the  dorsals  are  brown; 
the  pectorals  a  yellowish  brown;  the  ventral  and  anal  are  orange. 
On  both  sides  of  the  head,  upon  the  operculi,  are  two  rudimentary 
flattened  points. 

The  first  dorsal  fin  is  composed  of  eight  rays,  which  might  with 
propriety  be  called  spines.  The  second  dorsal  is  composed  of  rays 
much  divided.  The  pectoral  fins  consist  of  seventeen  branched 
rays.  The  ventral  fin  of  one  ray  and  five  imperfect  rays,  and  the 
<;audal  fin  has  seventeen  rays. 

The  weakfish  gives  amusement  to  more  anglers  of  the  metropolis 
than  any  other  fish  on  our  lists.  They  run  in  great  numbers  during 
the  summer  months  and  early  fall.  July,  August  and  September 
will  be  found  to  be  the  most  successful  months  for  weakfishing. 
Into  every  shallow  estuary  and  creek  and  tide-channel  the  weakfish 


w 


riSHES    OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  25 

gwarm  and  it  is  their  habit  to  run  in  from  deep  water  on  the  incom- 
ing tide,  the  large  ones  swimming  four  or  five  feet  below  the  sur- 
face. 

Before  the  rapacious  bluefish  came  from  the  South  in  such  num- 
bers and  regularity,  the  weakfish  were  much  more  plentiful  on  our 
coasts,  and  though  it  is  a  sort  of  post  hoc  prop  hoc  argument,  yet 
many  claim  that  the  gradual  decrease  in  the  supply  of  weakfish  is 
due  to  the  bluefish's  advent. 

As  above  stated,  the  weakfish  can  be  taken  almost  anywhere  on 
the  Atlantic  coast  from  the  Chesapeake  Bay  up  to  the  Connecticut 
river,  and  a  few  of  the  best  places  to  take  them  are  the  fol- 
lowing: 

Princess  Bay,  reached  by  way  of  the  South  Ferry;  Fort  Lafay- 
ette in  the  Narrows;  Newark  Bay;  up  the  Long  Island  Sound  at 
Westchester  Creek;  at  Atlantic  City,  and  at  the  mouth  of  the  Del- 
aware river. 

The  nearness  of  many  of  these  places  to  the  great  cities,  New 
York,  Brooklyn  and  Philadelphia,  gives  an  opportunity  to  the  an- 
gler with  little  leisure  to  take  his  day  or  two  of  fishing  in  the  tossing 
ocean  and  take  what  he  catches  home  with  him.  It  would  be  best, 
too,  to  do  this  last  as  soon  as  he  can,  for  the  weakfish  unless  eaten 
while  yet  the  brilliant  tints  shine  on  his  sides  is  of  a  poor  and  in- 
sipid flavor. 

The  weight  of  this  fish  varies  from  two  pounds  running  close  in 
shore,  to  those  of  eighteen  pounds,  rarely  caught,  and  that  only  in 
deep  water. 

A\  eak fishing  is  generally  carried  on  from  a  boat  anchored  in  the 
tideway  and  the  best  stage  of  the  tide  is  the  flood  tide,  and  especial- 
ly the  last  half  of  it.  It  affords  the  most  sport  to  fish  for  the 
squeteague  with  a  light  bamboo  rod;  with  a  rod  his  capture  is  more 
certain,  and  it  is  not  true  fishing  to  take  a  delii'ate  fish  like  the 
weakfish  out  of  the  water  with  a  heavy  hand  line,  though  perfectly 
allowable  in  the  case  of  the  fierce  and  weighty  bluefish. 

The  reel  should  be  large,  the  same  as  is  used  in  fishing  for  the 
small  striped  bass;  the  line,  a  finely-twisted  linen  one,  light  as  may 
be  consistent  with  strength.     The  lighter  the  line  the  lighter  the 

[3] 


26  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

sinker,  is  a  rule  of  great  consideration  in  salt  water  angling.  A 
light  swivel  sinker  is  used,  and  a  leader,  upon  which  two  hooks  of 
large  bend  are  fastened.  An  excellent  hook  is  4-0,  best  hollow 
point  Limerick.  The  best  bait  is  the  shedder  crab,  and  among  other 
baits  hard  clam,  shrimp  or  a  piece  of  menhaden  or  other  light  col- 
ored fish. 

If  you  are  fishing  for  the  smaller  Aveakfish  make  a  cast  and  {hen 
allow  the  sinker  to  remain  off  the  bottom  three  or  four  feet.  If  in 
the  tide-way  and  for  larger  game,  it  is  well  to  use  a  float  which  will 
hold  the  baits  some  five  feet  below  the  surface. 

The  weakfish  bites  fiercely  and  makes  a  brave  fight,  and  his  favor- 
ite tactics  are  to  run  with  the  line  faster  than  it  is  reeled  off,  to 
overrun  it,  as  the  angler  terms  it,  and  so  shake  out  the  hooks.  This 
operation  is  made  easier  by  the  fact  that  the  jaws  of  the  weakfish 
are  parchment-like  and  in  them  the  hook  makes  a  large  rent,  being 
stayed  only  by  the  stiff  rim  of  the  mouth.  In  weakfishing,  then,  be 
Bure  to  keep,  the  line  taut. 


/ 


CHAPTEK  IV. 


The  Sheepshead. — Archosargui^  prohatocephalus. — Gill. 


The  fish  we  now  treat  of  is  the  greatest  delicacy,  according  to 
many,  which  the  sea  yields  to  man,  but  whether  it  ranks  higher  in 
this  respect  than  the  Spanish  mackerel  or  the  pompano,  I  think  is 
very  doubtful,  but  de  gicstibics  there  is  no  dispute.  The  flavor 
of  the  sheepshead  is  however  acknowledged  by  everyone  to  be  most 
excellent.  The  appearance  of  the  fish  is  most  peculiar.  The  head 
is  large  and  massive,  and  the  back  greatly  arched  at  the  shoulders, 
and  along  the  most  of  its  length  is  placed  a  large  dorsal  fin,  which 
the  sheepshead  can  raise  or  lower  at  will  into  a  groove  where  it  fits 
neatly.  I  know  of  no  other  fish  whose  scientific  name  is  a  direct 
translation  of  its  common  and  local  appellation — (prohatocephalus 
is  sheepshead  turned  into  Greek).  This  coincidence  is  caused  by  the 
marked  resemblance  between  the  front  teeth  of  the  sheepshead  and  the 
la,nd  ovis.  The  tooth  system  of  the  sheepshead  is  remarkably  well  de- 
veloped ;  besides  the  front  incisors  (six  or  eight)  there  are  molars  pow- 
erful enough  to  crack  a  clam-shell  with  ease.  The  color  of  the  fish  is 
brassy  bn  the  dorsal  ridge,  merging  into  dull  silver,  which  gets  lighter 
as  it  nears  the  ventral  line.  About  the  body  at  right  angles  to  the 
medial  line  run  six  dusky  bands  ;  the  eye  is  large  and  gamy.  The 
dorsal  fin  is  composed  of  twelve  spines  and  twelve  rays.  The  pec- 
toral fins  are  composed  each  of  sixteen  ramose  rays.  The  ventral 
ray  consists  of  one  spine  and  five  rays  ;  the  anal  fin  of  ten  soft  rays. 
Upon  each  shoulder  is  a  dark  spot.     Altogether,   the  sheepshead  is 


30  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

one  of  those  beautifully  colored,  toothsome  fishes  which  only  salt 
water  holds  within  its  depths. 

The  sheepshead  runs  in  size  from  half  a  pound  up  to  fifteen 
pounds,  and  like  most  of  the  other  coast  fishes,  is  a  summer  visitor  ; 
appearing  in  June  and  leaving  in  November.  This  fish  runs  up 
from  the  South,  and  increases  in  size  as  it  nears  our  waters.  The 
sheepshead  is  not  seen  above  New  York  State.  Though  he  seldom 
appears  in  such  numbers  as  the  bluefish,  or  even  the  weakfish,  yet 
sometimes  the  sheepshead  come  in  great  schools,  and  happy  is  the 
fisherman  who  falls  in  with  such  a  collection  of  them.  It  is  a  thing 
to  boast  of,  the  capture  of  a  large  sheepshead. 

The  front  teeth  of  the  sheepshead  are  wisely  given  him  for  a 
special  habit  of  his  ;  he  swims  about  sunken  logs,  along  the  bottom 
rocks,  and  is  enabled  by  his  projectmg  teeth  to  bite  off  the  different 
molluscs  which  form  the  food  of  the  sheepshead.  This  grazing  habit 
of  the  fish  has  given  rise  to  an  arrangement  on  the  Virginia  coast 
by  which  the  certainty  of  an  annual  call  from  the  sheepshead  is  se- 
cured. A  writer  in  the  first  volume  of  The  Angjeb  has  well 
described  this  plan  : 

"  The  natives  drive  long  stakes  of  split  wood  into  the  bottom  of 
inlets  and  sounds  in  square  or  circular  shape,  forming  pens.  On 
these  stakes  the  molluscs  soon  attach  themselves,  and  the  sheepshead 
finds  in  or  about  them  an  attraction  habitual  where  he  can 
eat  to  his  fill  without  beating  about  for  the  delicacies  he  demands." 

Sheepshead  are  caught  by  hand-line  and  with  rod  and  reel,  and  of  the 
two  methods  of  course  the  skillful  angler  will  chose  the  latter.  The 
sheepshead  is  a  wary  and  careful  fish,  and  to  draw  him  from  his  na- 
tive element  requires  skill  and  patience.  The  rod  should  be  a  stout 
©ne,  and  about  nine  feet  long — the  regulation  striped  bass  rod  is 
about  right.  The  line  most  thought  of  by  skilled  sheepshead  fish- 
ermen is  a  braided  linen  line  of  the  smallest  diameter  giving  strength 
enough.  To  this  line  is  fastened  a  swivel  and  tracing  sinker,  and 
also  a  double  gut  leader  composed  of  two  parts,  one  of  which  is 
about  two  feet  in  length,  the  other  twelve  inches.  The  best  bait  is 
the  soft  clam,  either  put  on  whole  or  with  the  shell  removed  ;  the 
next  best  is  the  shedder  crab — (is  there   any  living  sea   animal  that 


FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST.  31 

won't  take  it  ?)  The  hooks  are  made  of  stout  wire,  short  shank,  and 
ringed.  Most  tackle  dealers  sell  a  sheepshead  hook.  The  reel 
ought  to  be  a  multiplier,  and  about  the  size  used  in  bass-fishing.  On 
making  a  cast  the  sinker  is  allowed  to  find  bottom,  and  then  the  line 
IS  drawn  taut.  The  sheepshead  is  a  cautious  nibbler,  and  the  taut 
line  enables  the  fisherman  to  feel  his  slightest  nibble  at  the  bait.  On 
being  hooked  the  sheepshead  will  come  up  without  making  much 
fuss,  but  when  near  the  surface  of  the  water  will  often  sink  like  a 
shot. 

The  best  places  to  take  the  sheepshead  are  the  following  :  On  the 
New  Jersey  coast  off  Long  Branch  ;  atBarnegat ;  off  Atlantic  City; 
at  Rockaway  Beach,  and  in  the  South  Bay. 

The  sheepshead  is  heavily  armored  with  scales,  and  a  landing  net 
is  a  necessary  part  of  the  angler's  outfit. 


CHAPTEfl  V. 


The  Kingfish. — Menticirrufi  nebuhsuH — Mitcb. 


The  kingfish,  or  whiting,  us  it  is  called  along  the  southern  coast, 
is  the  gamiest  fish  for  its  size  known  to  the  angler.  Its  great 
gaminess,  its  beauty  of  coloring  and  form,  and  its  excellent  flavor 
combined  to  cause  the  loyal  citizens  of  New  York  in  the  colonial 
days,  to  name  the  fish  the  king-fish. 

It  used  to  be  very  abundant  in  the  waters  of  New  York  city,  and 
with  the  small  striped  bass,  was  the  crowning  glory  of  the  old 
time  fishing.  In  such  esteem  was  the  king-fish  that  I  have  read  in 
some  fishing  book  that  the  New  York  angler  on  hearing  that 
king-fish  were  to  be  caught  from  the  pier-heads,  would  seize  his  rod 
and  basket  and  rush  off  in  his  shirt  sleeves  to  enjoy  the  long  wished 
for  sport. 

But  now  the  kingfish  are  very  scarce  in  our  harbor  ;  but  there  are 
plenty  of  them  to  be  bought  in  Fulton  Market,  having  been  brought 
up  to  the  city  from  the  Jersey  coast  and  the  South  Bay.  Genio.  C. 
Scott  is  very  enthusiastic  about  the  kingfish,  giving  it  a  very  high 
rank  among  salt  water  game  fishes  ;  and  he  makes  the  assertion 
that  the  New  York  angler  cares  more  for  a  two  pound  whiting  in 
his  basket  than  (well  I  have  forgotten  how  many  pounds  of  any 
other  salt  water  fish.)  But  without  claiming  as  much  as  this  for 
the  kingfish,  he  is  worthy  in  every  respect  of  the  high  esteem  in 
which  he  is  held  by  anglers  and  epicures. 

The  kingfish,  also  sometimes  called  barb,  is  tapering  and  long  in 
form,  has  a  complete  covering  of  round  and  ciliated  scales,  and  on 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  3^ 

the  gill  cover  are  two  stout  flattened  spines.  The  head  and  moutb 
are  small  and  the  snout  well  thrown  forward.  The  teeth  in  the  two* 
jaws  are  not  alike  ;  in  the  upper  jaw  they  are  long  and  acute  ;,in  the  • 
lower  they  are  short  and  bent  inward.  There  are  two  dorsal'  fins  ;  • 
the  first  is  a  triangle  and  is  remarkable  for  the  height  of  the  fifi-fet  • 
ray.  The  second  dorsal  is  long  and  low  ;  the  pectorals  are  wide  ' 
and  pointed.  The  anal  fin  is  composed  of  one  spine  and  eighth 
rays.     The  tail  is  curved  in  and  then  out  like  the  letter  S. 

The  kingfish  glows  with  many  beautiful  tints  ;  upon  the  back  and 
sides  are  shades  of  grey  and  silvery  red  :  the  abdomen  is  blueishi 
white  and  the  fins  are  of  different  colors.  The  first  dorsal  fin  is- 
brown  ;  the  caudal  and  pectoral  fins  are  olive  brown  ;■  the  ventral 
and  anal  fins  are  yellow.  On  the  sides  above  the  lateral  line  are- 
many  dark  stripes  or  rather  bands,  hence  nebulosus.  It  is  a  summer 
fish  and  runs  in  July  and  August,  and  in  its  wanderings  it  never 
goes  beyond  Cape  Cod. 

The  kingfish,  as  I  have  said,  is  very  rarely  met  with  about  New 
York,  but  further  south,  at  the  inlet  and  along  down  to  Florida  they 
are  very  plentiful.  A  light  rod  and  multiplying  reel,  a  strongs  an^ 
very  light  line,  a  swivel  sinker  and  two  rather  small  hooks  ara  what, 
is  required  in  the  way  of  tackle;  much  the  same  rig  as  is  used  in^ 
weakfishing.  The  bait  either  shedder  crab  or  sand- worm.  The  king-. 
fish  is  thoroughly  game  ;  he  seizes  the  bait  eagerly  and  then  gO€»^^  tos 
the  bottom,  following  up  this  movement  with  long  runs  from  right  to* 
left ;  it  is  really  remarkable  what  a  determined  resistance  the  little 
king-fish  will  make.  In  size  he  varies  from  one  to  six  pounds,  thft 
average  being  two  or  three  pounds.  The  time  to  fish  for  them  is. 
when  the  tide  is  running  in.  Kingfish  can  be  caught  along  the 
south  side  of  Long  Island,  off  the  Jersey  Coast,  at  Atlantic  City^ 
Long  Brunch  and  Barnegat  Inlet,  and  f  urth^x HQukh  they  are  ver^ 
common. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


The  Bonito. — barda  pelamy ^.—GiW. 


The  bonito,  or  skip- jack  as  the  fishermen  call  it,  is  a  wanderer  in 
all  the  warmer  waters  of  the  world.  It  is  a  species  of  tunny,  sup- 
posed to  have  been  first  seen  at  the  Island  of  Sardinia.  It  is  plentiful 
in  the  Mediterranean  Sea  to  this  day  ;  is  found  off  the  east  coast  of 
Africa,  in  the  waters  of  South  America  and  all  along  our  eastern 
«oa8t.  In  appearance  the  bonito  resembles  the  members  of  the 
mackerel  tribe,  but  on  a  second  inspection  is  found  to  be  vastly 
stouter  and  heavier  in  proportion  to  its  size. 

Its  symmetrical  form  and  sharply  cut  fins  give  it  an  appearance  of 
great  speed,  and  its  sharp  teeth  a  rather  vicious  look.  It  is  nearly 
one-quarter  as  broad  as  it  is  long.  The  scales  on  the  bonito  are  so 
fine  that  they  are  scarcely  visible  to  the  eye.  The  mouth  is  well 
supplied  with  teeth,  each  jaw  has  about  twenty  fine  acute  teeth, 
slightly  inclined  inward,  and  at  the  base  of  the  tongue  there  are 
two  patches  of  small  teeth.  The  eye  is  large  and  prominent.  The 
first  dorsal  is  long  and  consists  of  twenty-one  weak  spines  ;  the  sec- 
<Jond  dorsal  is  rather  small  and  has  two  spines  and  a  number  of  rays; 
behind  this  fin  are  nine  finlets.  The  pectoral  fins  are  long,  triangu- 
lar and  lodged  in  a  "cavity  fitting  their  shape.  The  ventrals  also 
have  such  a  hollow  into  which  they  fit.  Between  the  anal  and  the 
caudal  fin  there  are  six  or  seven  finlets.  The  caudal  is  curiously 
curved  inwards,  about  the  shape  of  a  crescent. 

The  top  of  the  head  and  sides  are  dark  lead  color.  The  belly  is 
an  ashen   grey,  almost  blue  in  some   places.     The  ventral  fins  are 


■>'.., 


TISHES    or   THE  EAST    ATLATSTTIC   COAST.  39 

white  and  the  other  fins  are  black  or  a  dark  blue  color.  Upon  the 
sides  are  six  or  eight  stripes  iparalled  to  each  other.  These  stripes 
alone  should  serve  to  identify  the  fi^h.  Th-e  bonito  visits  us  in 
August  and  September,  at  the  same  time  as  their  nobler  brother,  the 
Spanish  mackerel,  and  these  last  being  worth  in  the  market  twenty 
and  twenty-five  cents  per  pound  and  the  bonito  about  six  cents, 
there  is  a  vast  deal  of  imposition  practiced  by  the  marketmen,  es- 
pecially the  smaller  dealers  outside  of  the  market.  The  two  fish 
look  somewhat  alike  but  their  flavors  are  miles  apart.  The  bonito 
is  coarse  and  not  very  good,  but  the  Spanish  mackerel  is  one  of  the 
greatest  luxuries  taken  from  the  sea. 

The  bonito  is  frequently  caught  by  blue-fishing  parties ;  it  takes 
the  same  bait  as  the  bluefish  and  often  accompanies  the  bluefish 
armies,  and  also  sometimes  travels  in  -large  schools  of  its  own  kind. 
In  trolling,  which  is  the  only  way  of  taking  him  with  the  hook,  he 
seizes  the  bait  with  a  snap  and  makes  almost  as  much  of  a  struggle 
as  the  bluefish.  Those  caught  for  the  market  are  taken  in  seine 
nets  and  when  honestly  sold  are  very  cheap.  Cape  Cod  seems  to  be 
their  northern  limit,  and  they  are  plentiful  in  the  summer  months 
in  Massachusetts  Bay. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


The  Black  Drum. — Fogonias  chromic. — Lace]). 


The  drum  is  the  largest  fish  caught  with  hook  and  line  that  visits 
the  Eastern  coast.  Of  this  fish  there  are  two  distinctly  different 
varieties,  distinguished  by  the  coloring.  The  black  drum  and  the 
red  drum,  although  thus  differently  marked,  are  not,  as  many  sup 
pose,  two  separate  kinds  of  fish,  but  are  species  of  one  and  the  same 
class.  Tl^e  so-called  "banded  drum"  is  not  a  member  of  this  class, 
but  belongs  to  a  totally  distinct  family — that  of  the  Gorvince. 

In  the  months  of  August  and  September  these  "  heavy-weights  " 
of  the  angler's  list  arrive  in  swarms,  or  rather  in  small  companies, 
off  the  Jersey  shore.  The  drum  is  a  social  fish,  and  where  you  find 
one,  you  are  pretty  sure  of  finding  others  also  ;  and  so  it  often  hap- 
pens that  schools  of  them  are  taken  in  the  seine  nets  cast  for  menha- 
den. Such  as  are  caught  in  this  way  are  ground  up  for  fertilizing 
purposes  ;  a  great  waste  of  a  very  good  food-fish. 

The  black  drum  is  a  heavy,  compact  and  solid  fish,  of  great  depth 
as  compared  with  its  length.  From  the  chin  depend  nearly  twenty 
fleshy  cirri.  The  body  is  covered  with  a  heavy  coat  of  large  and 
ucsymmetrical  scales,  and  on  the  gill-cover  are  two  blunt  points. 
Each  jaw  is  well  armed  with  blunt  teeth,  closely  put  together  and 
eminently  fitted  to  grind  and  crunch.  There  are  no  teeth  upon  the 
tongue.  A  marked  feature  of  this  fish  is  the  abundance  of  fin- 
power  with  which  it  is  supplied.  First,  there  are  two  dorsal  fins, 
very  prominent  when  expanded,  and  fitting  into  a  groove  which  is 
more  developed  for  the  first  dorsal.     The  first  dorsal  fin  is  composed 


C4] 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  43 

of  ten  stout  flattened  rays  ;  the  second  dorsal,  ot  one  very  short 
ray  and  about  twenty  soft  rays.  The  pectoral  fins  are  large  and 
pointed  ;  the  anal  fin  has  one  very  short  ray  and  another  long  and 
stout  one. 

The  prevailing  color  is  darkish  bronze,  of  a  brown  tint  ;  lighten 
ingas  it  nears  the   ventral   region.     Behind   each   pectoral  fin   is  a 
round  dark  spot.     The  scales  are  silvery  on  the  exposed  edges.    The 
black  drum,  as  it  is   called,    is   dark  brown,  rather  than  black,  and 
the  red  drum  is  lighter  in  tint,  reddish  and  coppery. 

In  size  the  drum  runs  from  twenty  to  one  hundred  pounds  and 
over,  and  their  habitat  is  in  extent  from  Florida  to  Xew  York. 

Most  of  the  drum  are  captured  in  seine  nets  during  the  summer 
months,  but  the  angler,  (probably  tired  of  troutlings  and  basslets, 
and  following  the  example  of  the  English  sportsman  who,  wearied 
of  pheasants  and  jack-rabbits,  journeys  over  half  a  world  to  find 
tigers  and  elephants)  standing  in  the  surf  takes  the  monster  out  of 
his  native  element  by  a  happy  combination  of  strength,  tackle  and  skill. 

Black  drum  are  taken  from  the  flat  beaches  of  New  Jersey  while 
the  tide  is  running  up  ;  they  are  not  found  at  all  at  ebb  tide.  Evi- 
dently they  run  out  into  deep  water,  and  follow  up  the  incoming 
tide,  seeking  food,  which  is  generally  crabs,  clams,  molluscs  and  sand 
insects  of  all  kinds. 

The  drum  is  taken  without  the  use  of  a  rod.  The  angler  stands 
on  the  beach  at  the  edge  of  the  surf,  or  a  little  way  in  it,  and  uses  a 
long  hand  line — two  or  three  hundred  feet  of  Cuttyhunk  striped  bass 
line  is  about  the  thing.  The  line  should  be  as  light  as  is  possible  in 
bringing  in  such  big  fish.  To  the  line  is  attached  a  heavy  "  cast," 
or  "  bank"  sinker,  and  above  this  lead  are  fastened  the  hooks  ;  gen- 
erally two  are  used,  which  are  large — numbers  1  and  2  "  sea  hooks" 
are  about  right  in  size.  The  bait  used  is  either  crab,  clam  (soft  shell) 
or  mussel.  The  drum  can  crush  almost  any  mollusc  with  his  pow- 
erful teeth,  and  it  is  said  he  is  very  destructive  to  the  oyster  fanns 
along  the  coast.  The  baited  line  is  cast  far  out  in  the  surf  by  the 
angler,  and  as  the  action  of  the  waves  rolling  in  brings  along  with 
them  the  heavy  sinker,  the  fisherman  coils  up  in  a  round  recep- 
tacle hanging  from  his    neck  the  slack  of  the  line.     It  often  hap- 


44  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

pens  that  the  bait  is  seized  when  there  is  scarcely  enough  water 
to  cover  the  fins  of  the  drum. 

The  drum  bites  at  first  rather  gingerly,  like  the  sheepshead 
but  as  soon  as  he  feels  the  strain  of  the  line  he  begins  to  pull 
away,  and  then  as  the  angler  gradually  brings  him  in,  the  drum 
will  commence  a  series  of  short  runs,  following  each  other  quickly, 
and  such  are  the  staying  qualities  of  the  fish,  that  a  large 
one  of  fifty  pounds  weight  will  make  a  heavy  pull  for  the   angler. 


CHAPTEK  Vlir. 


The  Spakish   Mackerel — Scomberomorus  maculatum — Mitch, 


'J'he  Spanish  mackerel,  the  most  delicate  in  flavor  of  all  the  salt 
water  coast  fishes  (with  the  exception  of  the  striped  bass)  deserves, 
mention  in  this  paper  both  for  his  beauty  and  taste,  and  because  a 
description  of  him  will  make  the  reader  less  liable  to  be  imposed 
upon  by  fish  sellers  who  are  ready  to  palm  off  the  bonito  for  the 
royal  leader  of  all,  the  Spanish  mackerel. 

The  fact  is,  that  Spanish  mackerel  are  not  often  taken  by  amateur 
anglers  in  the  ocean  above  Cape  May.  Those  in  the  markets  of 
New  York  are  either  shipped  or  taken  in  seines  in  the  lower  bay 
and  off  the  J^ersey  shore.  The  Spanish  mackerel  is  far  more  elegant 
in  shape  and  color  than  the  bonito,  as  the  following  description  will 
show. 

The  very  symmetrical  and  rounded  form  of  the  Spanish  mackerel 
gives  the  fish  an  appearance  of  swiftness  and  grace.  The  head  is 
small  and  flattened  on  the  top  and  the  eyes  are  large.  On  the  pec- 
toral regions  the  scales  are  larger  than  on  other  parts  of  the  body. 
There  are  sixty  or  seventy  small  teeth  in  the  mouth.  There  are  two 
dorsal  fins,  the  first  of  which  is  transparent,  and  six  or  seven  dorsal 
finlets.  The  pectoral  fins  are  pointed.  Behind  the  anal  fin  are  five 
finlets.  The  caudal  fin  is  deeply  forked  and  on  each  side  of  it  are 
small  projections  called  by  icthyologists  carincB,  or  keels. 

The  coloring  of  the  Spanish  mackerel  consists  of  many  diverse 
tints  and  gives  the  fish  the  most  beautiful  appearance.  Above,  on 
the  sides  is  spread  a  light  sea  green,  deeper  in  shade  on  the  dorsal 
line,  and  there  are  darker  green  lines  that  go  down  the  sides  and 
just  cross  the  lateral  line.     Beneath,  on  the  belly  the  color  is  a  dull 


46  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

l>lue,  and  on  the  sides  are  numerous  gold  spots,  oval  in  shape. 
The  abdomen  is  of  a  copper  hue  ;  the  gill-covers  are  also  coppery,  in 
some  lights  reflecting  a  silver  brightness. 

The  fact  that  the  bonito  has  no  visible  scales,  and  is  barred,  not 
spotted,  oui?ht  to  serve  at  once  to  distinguish  between  the  bonito  and 
Spanish  mackerel. 

When  the  Spanish  mackerel  is  taken  by  hook  and  line  it  is  while 
trolling.  They  do  not  run  so  close  to  the  shore  as  the  bluefisii,  and 
this  is  why  the  angler  so  infrequently  meets  with  them.  Though  some- 
times caught  by  fishermen  while  bluefishing,  yet  when  a  trip  is  made 
tfpecially  for  the  mackerel  it  is  best  to  change  the  blitefish  tackle, 
substituting  a  smaller  spoon  and  lighter  sinker.  The  Spanish  mackerel 
takes  the  bait  with  a  snap,  makes  a  short  and  gallant  fight,  and  when 
he  yields  gives  up  thoroughly,  having  no  more  struggle  in  him.  Off 
the  Southern  coast  I  understand  the  capture  of  Spanish  mackerel 
with  hook  and  line  is  practiced  frequently  and  with  success.  The 
baits  used  are  the  same  as  in  bluefishing,  and  the  months  when  the 
mackerel  appear  on  the  Jersey  and  New  York  coast  are  August  and 
.September. 

•  The  Spanish  mackerel,  like  maiiy  other  good  fish,  is  *Homad,  and 
is  a  traveller  from  warmer  seas,  having  first  been  seen  in  the  Medi- 
terranean, and  now  being  caught  almost  everywhere.  In  size  they 
vary  from  one  to  six  pounds;  they  come  larger,  bat  I  never  have 
seen  any  exceeding  the  latter  weight. 

The  four  fish,  the  drum,  kingfish,  bonito  and  Spanish  mackerel, 
are  all  highly  valued  additions  to  our  fish  supply,  giving  enjoyment 
to  the  angler  and  food  to  the  many.  They  are  all  remarkable  for 
the  beauty  of  their  coloring — it  would  be  hard  to  find  their  equal 
in  this  respect  among  fresh  waters — and  it  is  a  curious  fact  that  the 
colors  of  salt  w^ater  fish  are  less  changeable  than  those  of  their 
fresh  water  brethren.  Not  only  more  unvarying  are  the  tints  flash- 
ing from  the  scales  of  the  dwellers  of  the  deep,  but  far  more  vivid. 
The  xjlear  yellow  of  the  porapano,  the  pure  white  of  the  striped 
bass,  the  deep  red  of  the  drum,  and  the  metallic  green  and  blues  and 
silver  of  the  bonito  and  Spanish  mackerel,  have  no  rivals  in  the  lakes 
and  rivers  of  the  inland 


CHAPTER  IX. 


The  Blackfish — Tautoga   ooiitis — Lmn. 


The  fish  we  treat  of  in  this  paper  are  humbler  members  of  the 
finny  tribe  than  those  mentioned  in  the  first  articles.  They 
cannot  lay  claim  to  beiuty,  nor  to  more  than  indifferent  gaminess, 
yet  they  compensate  for  this  great  lacking  by  their  number,  their 
toothsomeness,  and  by  the  fact  that  they  are  the  first  to  come  and 
almost  the  last  to  go  ;  and  also  that  they  run  nearest  the  great  city,, 
up  to  the  very  wharves,  affording  intense  delight  to  the  very  lowest, 
of  the  angling  fraternity — the  newsboy  after  he  has  sold  his  last  paper, 
the  bootblack  whose  jobs  are  few,  and  the  market  lounger  who  hag 
come  into  possession  of  a  lobster  thrown  out  of  one  of  the  trim  fish- 
ing smacks. 

At  aiiy  day  in  the  fishing  season  all  along  the  East  and  North 
rivers  the  string  pieces  of  the  wharves  are  alive  with  bare-legged 
hatless  urchins,  each  with  a  piece  of  lobster  for  bait,  and  all  engaged 
in  tempting  from  the  depths  "  tommies,"  eels  or  "  nigger-fish." 

The  fish  that  will  be  described  below  are  properly  termed  "  pan- 
fish,"  and  at  the  head  of  the  list  of  such  fish  we  would  with  propriety^ 
place  the  blackfish,  or  tautog.  His  firm  flesh  and  frequently  large  size,, 
and  his  disposition  to  resist  capture  almost  equalling  the  bluefish, 
would  perhaps  permit  of  his  being  classified  among  the  game  fish  of 
our  shore  waters,  but  as  he  will  not  take  a  surface  lure  that  would  per- 
haps be  objected  to  by  many. 

A  close  and  strictly  scientific  description  of  these  pan-fish  would 
not  be  necessary,  so  I  will  describe  the  fish  of  this  paper  from  an. 
angler's  point  of  view. 

The  blackfish  in  color  is  of  every  shade  of  grey,  often  only  marked 


■50  FlSHES   OP   THE   K^ST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

"with  greyish  spots  on  a  pervading  black,  and  is  always  deeply 
fola<ik  along  the  dorsal.  For  a  fish  not  swift  in  his  movements  his 
extent  of  fin  is  great,  especially  noticeable  in  the  dorsal  and  caudal  ; 
the  pectorals  also  are  very  large.  The  head  is  very  big  an  I  heavy  ; 
the  back  is  high-arched  immediately  behind  the  head.  The  eye  is 
full  and  round,  and  the  mouth  is  small  and  bordered  by  thick 
fleshy  lips.  There  is  a  heavy  coat  of  scales  over  the  whole  body, 
and  they  are  remarkably  hard  to  get  off  in  dressing  the  fish.  This 
difiiculty  can  be  partially  done  away  with  by  dipping  the  fish  in  vin- 
egar before  scaling  him. 

The  blackfish  runs  in  size  from  half  a  pound  to  ten  or  twelve 
pounds,  fish  of  the  latter  weight  being  taken  in  deep  water.  The 
•season  for  tautog  fishing  commences  in  the  last  of  April — fishermen 
€ay  when  the  willows  commence  to  bud — and  continues  through  the 
summer  months,  ending  about  the  middle  of  October. 

The  biackfish  is  a  bottoni  fish  ;  he  loves  the  rock-strewn  tide- 
"ways  and  the  shelving  sedgey  edges  of  narrow  channels.  It  was  this 
preference  of  the  tautog  that  made  New  York  Harbor  and  its  ap 
proaches  the  greatest  blackfishing 'grounds  known  to  the  angler. 

The  rocks  of  Hell  Gate  are  renowned  for  their  number,  but  only  be- 
cause of  the  vast  traffic  which  passes  through  that  channel  ;  they 
•do  not  exceed  or  even  equal  the  myriad  boulders  which  choke  the 
two  river  arms  to  the  north  of  it.  Little  Hell  Gate  is  a  a  roaring 
torrent  when  the  tide  is  running  up,  and  Bronx  or  Harlem  Kills  is 
its  counteri^art.  This  last  was  the  most  famous  place  of  all  for 
blackfishing. 

Right  in  the  middle  of  the  water  about  two  thirds  of  the  length 
of  the  Kills  from  the  Harlem  mouth,  there  is  a  vast  round  rock,  one 
of  those  smooth  topped  boulders,  relics  of  the  glacier  that  hollowed 
-out  the  bed  it  left  them  in.  At  half  tide  the  waters  sweep  by  this 
:stone  like  a  miniature  Niagara  and  create  a  strong  eddy  behind  it 
'There  existed  in  this  rock  a  huge  iron  ring  ;  no  one  ever  knew  how 
it  got  there — and  in  times  gone  by  if  the  angler  could  get  his 
"  painter"  tied  to  that  ring  at  the  first  of  the  flood  tide  he  was  sure 
of  as  much  sport  with  the  blackfish  as  he  cared  to  enjoy.  It  is  need- 
less to  say  to  Harlem  fishermen  of  to-day  that  a  blackfish   is  a  rara 


FISHES    OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC   COAST.  53 

avis  there  in  the  year  1883.  But  the  tautog  has  not  altogether  de. 
serted  the  lower  Sound,  and  below  I  will  give  the  names  of  some 
places  where  he  can  be  taken. 

The  tackle  for  blackfishing  does  not  differ  materially  from  that 
for  weakfishing,  save  that  the  hooks  should  be  low  in  the  point  and 
of  rather  heavy  wire.  The  hook,  when  the  sinker  has  reached  bot- 
tom should  then  be  drawn  a  foot  or  so  up  from  the  river  bed.  The 
best  baits  are  the  hard  clam  and  the  sand  worm,  and  when  the  fish 
are  plentiful  the  fiddler  crab,  placed  entire  on  the  hook. 

A  peculiar  way  of  fishing  which  I  have  noticed  along  the  Sound, 
is  to  have  a  pole  twelve  or  fourteen  feet  long  without  joints — a  "bean 
pole" — and  no  reel,  but  only  a  fixed  length  of  line.  The  pole  is 
elastic,  and  when  the  fish,  having  taken  the  bait,  is  wearied  with  his 
efforts  to  free  himself,  the  pole  is  raised  and  the  fish  swung  in  to  the 
fisherman's  hand — a  very  primitive  style  of  fishing,  and  one  only 
suited  to  shallow  water,  not  exceeding  sixteen  feet  in  depth.  When 
a  three  or  four  pound  blackfiph  strikes  he  makes  three  or  four  lunges 
to  right  and  left,  pulls  back  strongly,  and  sometimes  when  nearing 
the  top  moves  in  small  circles.  Those  under  a  pound  make  very 
little  resistance. 

Blackfish  can  be  taken  at  Barnegat,  off  Long  Branch  or  Rockaway 
Beach  in  great  numbers,  and  at  Montauk  Point ;  not  being  caught 
I  believe  above  Martha's  Vineyard. 

The  above  are  outside  fishing  spots,  but  Long  Island  Sound  rivals 
them  all.  Among  the  many  good  places  on  the  Sound,  Pelham  is 
the  best.  The  village  of  Pelham  is  situated  on  a  river  and  beautiful 
bay  of  that  name,  and  is  about  ten  miles  from  New  York  city.  It 
cah  be  easily  reached  from  the  metropolis  by  taking  the  New  Haven 
train  at  the  Harlem  depot  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven  and  Hart- 
ford Railroad.  The  ride  along  the  shore  and  through  the  rich 
farms  of  Westchester  county  is  a  delightful  one,  and  if  made  in 
August  or  September  is  pretty  sure  to  end  in  a  successful  day's 
fishing. 

The  flesh  of  the  blaekfish  is  white  and  firm,  and  if  cooked  as  de- 
scribed on  page  226,  vol.  1,  of  The  Angler,  is  one  of  the  most 
tasteful  of  all  the  salt  water  fishes. 


CHAPTER  X. 


The  Flounder — Flatessa  vulgains. — Gill. 


When  the  angler's  paper  of  America  employs  its  artist  to  depicc 
the  form  of  the  first  caught  flounder  of  the  summer  run,  and  when 
it  announces  the  results  of  his  labors  two  weeks  ahead,  then  my 
humble  pen  needs  no  excuse  for  treating  of  the  flatfish  in  these 
essays,  and  I  will  give  none. 

The  flounder  I  fear  has  been  much  looked  down  upon  ;  it 
has  been  called  opprobrious  epithets,  such  as  "  nigger  fish,"  but  its 
broad  back  will  bear  all  this  abuse,  and  it  will  continue  to  emerge 
triumphant  from  the  frying  pan  with  its  tail  turned  up  in  a  disdain- 
ful twist. 

The  flounder  has  one  virtue  not  possessed  by  its  prouder  relations  ; 
he  is  always  ready  to  be  caught.  Just  as  soon  as  it  gets  mild  enough 
for  the  hardiest  fisherman,  he  has  but  to  drop  his  hook  over  a  soft 
mud-bank,  and  when  he  raises  his  line,  lo  !  there  is  a  floundei  at  the 
other  end.  And  again,  when  the  flounder  makes  up  his  deliberate 
mind  to  bite  he  does  so  in  a  thorough  manner,  and  when  the  angler 
pulls  him  out  the  flounder  has  by  some  peculiar  internal  mechanism 
worked  the  hook  almost  down  to  his  tail  (swallowed  the  hook,  as  the 
boys  say),  thus  saving  the  fisherman  that  great  vexation  of  spirit 
consequent  on  losing  a  noble  fish. 

Before  this  is  in  type  every  reader  of  The  Angler  will  have  seen 
a  faithful  likeness  of  the  flounder,  so  it  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  de- 
scribe his  shape.     In  color  he  varies,  from  an  instance  of   one   white 


FISHES    OF    TUE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  57" 

on  both  sides  (one  side  is  always  white),  through  all  shades  of   mot- 
tled brown. 

The  big  fellows  (known  to  many  local  fishermen  as  tide  runners) 
are  a  deep,  rich  brown  or  black — frequently,  like  the  blackfish,  marked 
with  spots  of  gray.  Often  the  color  changes  after  they  are  caught. 
The  young  ones  and  the  smaller  kinds  are  lighter  in  tint,  when  very 
small  being  translucent.  I  don't  mean  to  say  you  could  read  a  news- 
paper through  them,  but  holding  them  up  to  the  light  you  can  see 
the  arrangement  of  the  bones  and  fins. 

It  is  a  curious  physical  fact  that  the   young  of    the  flounder,   the 
fry,  when  first  hatched  are  shaped  like  other  fish,    with  an   eye   on 
each  side  of  the  head,  but  through  a  process  of  adaptation,    as   the- 
fish  matures  the  eye,  strangely  enough,  slips  around  the   head,   andi 
takes  up  its  station  permanently  near  the  other.     I  have  never   seem 
this  done,  but  it  is  a  fact. 

The  flounder  is  caught  from  April  to  November,  and  is  in  the 
best  condition  at  the  extremes  of  the  season.  They  run  of  alL 
weights.  I  have  seen  them  that  didn't  weigh  anything,  (they  were 
the  translucent  ones)  and  others  that  would  make  the  index  point  ta 
six  pounds  ;  these  last  being  popularly  termed  flukes.  If  we  count 
in  the  halibut,  then  say  250  pounds  as  their  highest  limit.  The 
flounder  has  the  habit  of  lying  in  the  mud,  being,  fitted  for  this  by 
nature,  and  so  well  is  his  back  simulated  to  his  surroundings  that  it 
takes  a  pretty  old  crab  to  tell  where  the  flounder  ends  and  the  mud 
begins. 

The  peculiarity  of  flounder  fishing  is,  that  you  seldom  know  when.^ 
you  have  a  fish  on.  He  nibbles  softly  at  the  bait,  or  very  slowly^ 
sucks  it  in.  In  fishing  for  flounders  let  the  sinker  terminate  the- 
line  ;  then  above  this  rig  on  three  or  four  more  hooks,  small  but 
strong.  Let  the  lead  find  the  bottom  and  every  now  and  then  lift 
it  a  foot  or  so.  It  is  claimed  that  this  manoeuvre  makes  the  fish  for- 
get his  usual  calmness  and  dash  at  the  bait.  The  best  bait  is  sand 
wojms,  and  the  best  tide  during  which  to  fish  is  the  first  of  the  flood,, 
just  as  it  turns. 

Flounders  are  a  great  deal  misunderstood.  People  buy  theni' 
"  nine  days    old, "  and  then  find   they  are  not  good  to  eat ;   but. 


^  FiaHES   OF  THE  EAST   ATLANTIC  COAST. 

take  a  fresh  odc  right  out  of  the  water,  and  cook  him  as  he  should 
be  cooked,  and  he  will  prove  himself  a  fish  not  to  be  despised. 

The  best  place  to  catch  flounders  is  in  general  everywhere  ;  in 
particular,  Rockaway  Beach,  North  River,  Harlem  River,  Sands 
Point,  Westchester  Creek,  Pelham  and  Berrian's  Creek. 


CHAPTER  XL 


The  Sea  Bass. —  Centropristis  atrarius — Linn. 


The  sea  bass,  a  coast  fish  that  never  exceeds  three  pounds,  is  rarely 
caught  nowadays  except  in  the  ocean.  It  used  to  frequent  the  es- 
tuaries and  bays  about  New  York,  but  now  is  seldom  seen  there,* 
and  when  they  are  taken  are  very  small,,  averaging  about  half  a 
pound. 

The  sea  bass  has  many  different  colors  scattered  over  its  body. 
The  prevailing  tint  is  blue  and  black-blue  ;  the  gills  are  a  bright 
scarlet  and  the  inside  of  the  mouth  lined  throughout  with  a  brilliant 
yellow.  The  deep  blue  of  the  dorsal  gradually  merges  into  a 
lighter  blue  on  the  ventral  region. 

All  along  the  coast  these  sea  bass,  like  the  kingfish,  are  getting 
scarcer  and  scarcer,  whether  as  one  of  the  results  of  the  bluefish  at- 
tacks I  do  not  know.  As  I  have  said,  they  are  rarely  caught  by 
New  York  fishermen  ;  when  I  have  taken  them  it  has  been  at  the 
end  of  the  summer  fishing  in  the  coolish  days  of  October  and 
November. 

The  sea  bass  makes  less  resistance  to  capture  than  any  salt  water 
fish  I  know  of.  Even  the  flounder  will  curl  himself  up  until  he  be- 
comes like  an  umbrella,  coming  up  through  the  water  wrong  side  up, 
but  the  sea  bass  allows  himself  to  be  drawn  right  along,  and  when 
once  in  the  boat  dies  very  quickly.  One  would  expect  from  his 
great  stretch  of  fins  a  stout  fighter.  The  sea  bass  has  a  very  large 
mouth  and  big  eye,  and  a  heavy  coat  of  large  scales  covers  his  body. 

Although  generally  small  it  sometimes  reaches  the  weight  of 
three  pounds,  and  is  caught  of  that  size  off  Montauk  Point,  Long 


60  FISHES   OF    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

Island.  Though  not  a  very  prominent  fish  on  the  list  of  the  salt 
water  angler,  Kilburn,  the  artist,  has  included  a  beautiful  copy  of 
him  in  his  wonderful  series  of  game  fishes,  and  I  would  refer  my 
readers  to  that  work  for  a  just  idea  of  the  glorious  coloration  of  the 
salt  water  fishes. 

The  sea  bass  is  a  bottom  fish,  swimming  about  and  living  on  the 
crustaceans  that  inhabit  the  rocky  bed.  So,  in  fishing  for  sea  bass, 
the  sinker  should  be  kept  not  more  than  a  foot  above  the  bottom. 
The  best  bait  is  sandworms  and  clams,  and  the  best  tide  is  at  the 
flood.  The  sea  bass  is  not  very  good  eating  unless  just  from  the 
salt  water.  Like  the  weakfish,  if  kept,  it  has  a  tendency  to  grow 
oft  and  insipid. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


The  Bergall — Tautogolabrus  adspersus: 


This  fish  has  earned,  and  deservedly,  much  opprobrium  on  a  good 
many  accounts.  It  is  a  very  small  fish,  only  in  very  rare  instances- 
reaching  a  pound's  weight.  The  general  color  is  blueish  on  the  dor- 
sal, merging  into  a  greenish  hue  beneath.  Different  size*  vary 
greatly  in  color.  Some  bergalls  are  brownish,  some  blue,,  some 
green  ;  the  largest  have  an  orange  tint  about  the  gill  covers.  The- 
eye  is  not  large  and  the  mouth,  in  which  there  is  a  plentiful  supply 
of  sharp  teeth,  is  small  and  bordered  with  thick  lips  like  the  black- 
fish.  In  the  dorsal  fin  are  several  very  sharp  spines  likely  to  inflict 
a  severe  wound  unless  the  angler  is  careful. 

The  strong  scales  of  this  fish  are  almost  impossible  to  tak^  off  it 
once  allowed  to  dry.  A  dip  in  sharp  vinegar  will  render  the  task 
of  dressing  the  bergall  easier.  The  bergall  is  a  vicious  looking 
little  fish  ;  has  a  mean  face. 

This  fish  is  very  plentiful  about  New  York,  and  is  caught  about 
rocks  and  sunken  timbers.  The  bergall  is  an  invariable  co-dweller 
<vith  the  blackfish  ;  his  great  delight,  and,  indeed,  it  seems  to  be  the 
only  purpose  in  life,  is  to  steal  as  much  bait  as  he  can  swallow,  and 
f  am  inclined  to  believe  that  when  he  is  unable  to  eat  any  more  he 
takes  the  bait  off  the  hook  in  mere  wantonness  and  throws  it  away^ 

I  would  advise  all  anglers  who  have  caught  a  lot  of  bergalls  in 
their  day's  outing  not  to  go  to  the  trouble  of  taking  them  away  and 
cooking  them,  unless  of  more  than  usual  size.  The  best  thing  to  do- 
is  to  cut  them  up  with  the  bait  knife  and  throw  them  overboard 
(what  fishermen  call  "  baiting  the  spot "),  thus  serving  as  aa  a.ttrac- 


'64  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

'tion  to  other  and  better  fish.     As  a  food  fish  the  bergall  is  not  very 
good,  the  small  ones  frequently  being  muddy. 

I  do  not  suppose  that  anyone  would  think  of  going  out  especially 
for  bergalls,  but  if  the  fisherman  really  wants  to  catch  the  sly  fel- 
low, let  him  rig  a  "  gang  "  of  very  small  hooks,  having  a  big  bend 
and  extremely  sharp  points;  put  on  a  microscopic  piece  of  bait,  and 
as  soon  as  the  line  is  down  give  rt  a  sharp  jerk  upward.  I  have  often 
tried  this  method  with  success.  The  hooks  catch  everywhere,  in  the 
tail,  the  belly,  on  the  back  and  in  the   head.      The  bergall  bites 

^eagerly  at  low  tide. 


•      CHAPTER  Xni. 
The  Tomcod — Microgadus  tomcodus — Gill. 


The  tomcod  is  a  small  fish,  a  member  of  the  cod  family,  and  i» 
caught  in  large  quantities  about  New  York  wharves  in  summer  and 
fall.  The  tomcod  seldom  reaches  a  weight  of  half  a  pound,  (?)  attain- 
ing its  maximum  growth  about  the  time  of  early  frost.  It  is  a 
lively  little  fish  and  gives  great  sport  to  the  small  anglers  about  the 
metropolis.  It  has  the  exact  shape  and  form  of  the  codfish,  only  in 
coloration  and  marking  it  is  far  handsomer.  I  have  taken  a  tomcod. 
from  the  clear  waters  of  Harlem  Kills  in  the  month  of  September^ 
which,  when  it  was  landed  on  the  float  at  my  feet,  had  a  bright, 
golden  color  with  a  tinge  of  red.  The  eye  of  the  tomcod  is  promi- 
nent and  reddish  in  color.  The  fins  are  large,  excessively  so  con- 
fiidering  the  size  of  the  fish,  and  are  as  soft  as  wet  paper. 

He  is  a  gamier  fish  than  his  deep  sea  cousin,  and  if  in  large  quan» 
titles  gives  great  enjoyment.  The  largest  "  tommy  "  I  ever  caught — 
and  it  was  the  biggest  one  I  ever  saw — was  about  twelve  inches  long^ 
and  weighed  a  little  over  half  a  pound.  The  tomcod  is  not  such  a. 
bad  fish  to  eat  as  some  would  suppose  who  had  bought  them  fronii 
gome  fishmonger's  stall  where  the  ice  had  taken  the  flavor  out  of 
them  days  before.  Like  all  soft-fleshed  fishes  the  tomcod  must  be 
cooked  and  eaten  immediately  on  taking  it  from  the  water. 

The  very  large  ones  are  not  so  good  as  the  little  ones,  and  when 
an  unusual  catch  has  been  made  and  the  fish  dealers  are  anxious  to- 
dispose  of  the  perishable  stock,  they  give  the  tomcod  other  names^, 
such  as  " frostfish "  and  "London  trout,"  and  often  impose  upon.thft 


68  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

unwary.  They  are  totally  different  from  "  f rostfish,"  these  latter 
being  a  very  tasteful  fish  indeed.  As  for  "  London  trout,"  that  is 
a  very  good  name  to  entrap  countrymen  with.  The  best  time  of 
the  year  to  go  fishing  for  "  tomcods  "  is  September,  and  I  know  of 
no  better  place  than  along  the  docks  of  the  North  River,  from  110th 
street  to  Spuyten  Duyvel. 

The  rig  is  the  same  as  is  used  in  flounder  fishmg,  and  it  is  best  to 
fish  with  a  gang  of  hooks  fastened  above  a  hollow  round  sinker, 
which  must  be  light.  Sand  worms  are  the  best  bait,  and  the  ebb 
tide  I  have  always  found  to  be  the  most  successful  stage  of  the 
water.  There  used  to  be  in  Harlem  Kills  an  old  float  and  boat- 
house  kept  by  "  Sandy "  Gibson,  and  from  that  float,  which  was 
anchored  directly  over  the  once  famous  striped  bass  spot,  the 
"Willows,"  I  enjoyed  the  most  successful  pan  fishing  I  have  ever 
had.  It  was  a  great  place  for  tomcods  and  flounders,  and  off  of  it 
I  took  the  big  tomcod  mentioned  above.  Tomcods  will  take  the 
baited  hook  when  they  are  no  bigger  than  the  little  finger,  and  bite 
from  early  April  to  December.  The  smaller  they  are  the  better  they 
are  to  eat. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


The  Cobfish. — Gadus  morrhua. — Linn. 


Does  anyone  who  revels  in  black  bass  literature  ana  'orooK  trouo 
history  wonder  why,  nay,  indignantly  inquire,  what  business  the 
"  low-down  "  codfish  has  in  such  company  ?  The  New  York  City 
angler  can  tell  him.  "What  one  of  that  noble  fraternity  has  not 
gone  to  the  "  Cholera  banks  "  after  codfish,  and  what  one  of  that 
aforesaid  fraternity  has  ever  caught  one  ? 

Though  to  fishermen  who  are  joined  to  their  idols  in  the  shape  of 
a  six-ounce  bamboo  joss  and  a  mystic  brass  wheel,  quick-revolv- 
ing, termed  a  reel,  the  codfish  is  the  lowest  of  the  low,  yet  it  is  the 
most  important  food  fish,  with  the  exception  of  the  little  herring, 
known  to  our  age.  Whole  communities  live  by  catching  and  selling 
the  codfish,  and  the  right  of  fishing  for  them  in  certain  regions  has 
been  made  a  clause  in  international  treaties. 

The  codfish  multiplies  more  rapidly  than  any  other  salt  water  fish, 
and  lives  on  the  small  Crustacea  that  inhabit  the  depths  of  the  ocean. 
It  is  found  in  the  salt  waters  of  New  York  and  New  England  States, 
but  its  home  and  stronghold  is  at  the  fog-  shrouded  banks  of  the 
Newfoundland.  There  they  are  caught  by  the  thousands  of  tons, 
by  means  of  set  lines,  consisting  of  hundreds  of  feet  of  line,  havmg 
a  hook  at  every  interval  of  three  feet,  baited  with  small  pieces  of 
fish  or  clam.     These  lines,  heavily  leaded,  are  sunk  in  the  ocean  sup- 


72  FISHES    OF    THE    FAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

ported  by  a  float  on  the  surface  and  are  left  out  during  the  night, 
pulled  in  in  the  morning,  baited  again,  and  once  more  visited  during 
the  afternoon. 

Then  again  there  is  dory  fishing  for  codfish  (the  dory  is  a  slim 
and  long  skiff,  sharp  at  bow  and  stern,  and  as  light  on  the  waves  as 
a  cork).  This  is  the  most  exciting  and  dangerous  kind  of  fishing 
that  can  be  indulged  in.  A  fising  smack  starts  for  the  "  banks  "  and 
on  reaching  them  anchors.  Then  such  of  the  crew  as  may  be  chosen 
are  sent  out  in  dories  with  an  allowance  of  water  and  a  little  some- 
thing to  eat.  These  hardy  fishermen  row  away  over  the  waves 
(each  one  of  the  great  rollers  rising  higher  than  the  total  length  of 
his  light  craft),  and  soon  lose  sight  of  the  schooner.  Reaching  his 
appointed  grounds  each  man  anchors,  bows  on  to  the  ocean  swell, 
having  an  anchor  at  bow  and  stern.  A  moment  in  the  trough  of  the 
sea  would  be  instant  destruction.  Standing  up  in  his  tossing  boat, 
with  a  line  in  both  hands,  surrounded  by  the  shifting  fogs  and  thick 
mists,  the  toiling  fisherman  must  give  constant  attention  to  the  lines, 
straining  his  muscles  with  pulling  in  great  halibut,  haddock  and  cod- 
fish. The  fog  is  close  about  him,  when  suddenly  the  vast,  faintly 
outlined  form  of  a  New  York-bound  Cunarder  passes  within  stone- 
throw  of  his  dory,  or  the  air  grows  chill  by  the  nearing  presence  of 
some  huge  iceberg.  Such  is  the  life  of  the  cod-fisher,  and  many  are 
those  whom  the  returning  sloop  reports  as  "  missing." 

The  New  York  angler  knows  codfishing  in  a  different  aspect ;  lie 
sees  a  notice  in  his  Sunday  journal  that  the  commodious,  sumptu- 
ous, etc.,  etc.,  palace,  etc.,  etc.,  steamboat  will  take  a  party  ot  gen- 
tlemen to  the  "  fishing  banks  "  at  such  and  such  a  time.  Excursion 
ticket  one  dollar;  lines  and  bait  furnished.  Well,  he  goes;  why 
not  ?  After  heaving  a  coarse  cotton  line  and  a  pound  or  so  of  lead 
an  hour  or  two,  he  turns  from  the  fishing  banks  to  the  fishing  bar, 
calls  for  a  glass  of — water,  and  comes  home  disgusted  with  things 
in  general.  The  bait  on  these  occasions  is  chopped  fish  or  clams. 
The  codfish,  when  hooked,  makes  two  or  three  lunges  and  then  comes 
up  like  a  log.  I  have  said  too  much  about  the  codfish — he  is  an  ugly 
gray  fish  in  my  opinion,  good  neither  to  eat  nor  to  catch.  In  the 
fall  along  the  Jersey  coast  codfish  are  sometimes  taken  by  skittering 
with  a  piece  of  red  flannel  as  a  lure. 


[61 


CHAPTER  XV. 


The  Haddock — Morrhua  agleferivs. — Gill. 


This  fish,  though  not  properly  an  angler's  fish,  still  for  the  same 
reasons  as  the  codfish,  ought  to  be  included  here.  It  is  a  big  and 
heavy  fish,  with  peculiar  fins  looking  as  if  they  had  been  trimmed. 
Its  mouth  has  numerous  teeth  and  its  eyes  are  large.  There  is  a 
strange  story  conaected  with  the  haddock.  The  tribute-takers  of  Ca- 
pernaum demanded  tribute  of  Simon  x*eter  and  the  Lord.  The 
apostle  was  told  by  the  Lord  : 

"  Go  thou  to  the  sea  and  cast  an  hook  and  take  up  the  fish  that 
first  Cometh  up,  and  when  thou  hast  opened  his  mouth,  thou  shalt 
find  a  piece  of  money,  that  take,  ard  give  unto  them  for  me  and 
thee." 

The  apostle  did  as  he  was  directed,  and  caught,  according  to  the 
tradition,  a  haddock,  and  while  taking  Lhe  coin  out  of  his  mouth  he 
grasped  it  between  his  finger  and  thumb,  and  to  this  day  the  had- 
dock bears  the  marks  of  the  impress  of  the  apostle's  thumb  and 
forefinger.  They  are  two  black  marks  about  the  size  of  a  three- 
cent  piec6  immediately  behind  the  head,  just  where  an  angler  to-day 
would  grasp  a  fish  to  extract  the  hook  from  its  jaws. 

The  haddock  has  a  distinct  black  line  running  along  its  sides;  the 
same  lateral  line  in  the  codfish  is  white.  As  regards  coloration  the 
haddock  is  darker  than  the  codfish.  It  is  a  more  tasty  fish  also,  and 
is  usually  smoked  before  being  brought  to  market.  A  celebrated 
kind  of  smoked  haddock  comes  from  Scotland  and  they  are  known 
as  "  finnan  baddies."     The  haddock  is  caught  prmcipally  in  winter 


76  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

by  professional  fishermen  in  the  neighborhood  of  Cape  Cod,  though 
the  extent  coastwise  of  the  haddock  run,  is  from  Delaware  Bay  up 
to  northern  Maine.  The  baits  used  are  chopped  herrings  and  some- 
times salted  menhaden. 


CHAPTEE  XVf . 


Tbb  Menhaden — Alosa  menhaden — (Gill.)^ 


This  seemingly  worthless  fish  is  one  of  liie  most  important  of  all 
the  salt  water  fishes.  There  is  not  one  of  us,  be  he  a  fisherman  or 
not,  who  is  not  interested  in  the  mossbunker.  They  swarm  all  along: 
the  coast,  even  some  distance  up  the  rivers  every  summer,  and  upon> 
the  regularity  and  perpetuity  of  that  migration  depends  to  a  great 
extent  the  fish  supply  of  the  Eastern  Coast  cities.  The  magnet 
that  draws  the  great  armies  of  bluefish  to  our  waters  is  the  vast 
shoals  of  menhaden  that  precede  them.  The  best  bait  for  stripedi 
bass  in  surf -fishing,  and,  in  fact,  the  material  of  all  chumming,  i* 
the  mossbunker.  I  have  seen  great  collections  of  these  menhadem 
ascending  the  Sound,  and  next  day  following  a  school  of  porpoises, 
rolling,  tossing  and  diving  in  merry  style  through  the  water. 

The  great  use  the  menhaden  are  put  to  is  in  making  fish  oil,  and 
right  here  lies  a  very  threatening  danger  to  our  coast  fishing.  Seine- 
nets  are  made  that  cover  acres,  fast-sailing  steam  tugs  scour  the 
shoal  waters  of  the  coast  at  all  times  and  seasons,  and  with  one  haul 
of  the  nets,  worked  by  huge  engines,  countless  thousands  of  the 
defenceless  menhaden  are  taken.  The  fish  are  then  either  ground 
up  and  subjected  to  the  process  of  rendering  for  oil  or  are  sold  to  the 
shore  farmers  for  manure.  There  are  fleets  of  these  steam  tugs- 
sent  out  by  rich  corporations,  not  to  speak  of  smaller  and  less  am- 
bitious vessels.  In  this  way,  in  season  and  out  of  season,  thousands- 
ipon  thousands  of  the  most  important  bait  fish  that  swims  are  ruth. 


80  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

iessly  slaughtered  to  serve  the  pleasure  and  avarice  of  greedy  capi- 
lalists  among  whom  it  would  be  safe  to  bet  there  is  not  one  angler. 

As  a  result  of  this  system  of  wholesale  depletion  the  mossbunker 
is  steadily  decreasing  and  threatens  to  become  scarce  and  finally  to 
become  extinct.  If  this  should  ever  happen  there  would  be  an  im- 
mediate falling  off  in  our  fish  supply,  and,  unless  the  hand  of 
Providence  interposed,  a  total  failure  of  it.  But  there  is  no  reason 
why  the  capture  of  menhaden  should  be  stopped  altogether,  but 
there  is  every  reason  why  the  menhaden  fishermen  should  limit  their 
destructive  trade  to  certain  periods.  To  secure  this  it  behooves  the 
Assemblies  of  the  States  bordering  the  Atlantic  to  pass  an  act  lim- 
iting the  catching  of  menhaden  with  seine  nets  to  an  open  season 
and  have  the  rest  of  the  year  close.  This  would  allow  the  menha- 
den time  to  multiply  and  would  secure  the  future  of  the  fish  markets. 

In  form  the  menhaden  resembles  the  shad.  It  has  the  same  shape 
and  contour  of  body.  It  is  a  bright  silvery  fish,  and  so  far  as  I 
know,  has  never  been  taken  with  a  hook.  One  of  the  most  useful 
purposes  the  menhaden  serve  is  in  the  lobster  fisheries;  the  fish  are 
salted  before  being  used  for  bait.  The  menhaden  are  almost  all  of 
one  size — about  twelve  inches  long.  The  farmers  of  Long  Island 
sometimes  eat  the  mossbunker.  It  has  an  oily,  rather  rancid  and 
"fishy  "taste. 

It  is  necessary  that  every  angler  should  use  his  best  influence  to 
secure  some  protection  for  the  menhaden,  else  they  will  become  ex- 
.tinct  and  with  them  a  great  branch  of  salt  water  fishing.  / 


CHAPTEK  XVir. 


The  Lafayette,  or  Spot — Liastomus  ohliquus. 


This  fish  is  said  to  have  first  made  its  appearance  in  any  numbers 
on  our  coast  simultaneously  with  General  Lafayette  in  the  year  1824, 
and  from  that  fact  it  has  taken  its  most  popular  name.  It  is  a  very 
small  silvery  fish  with  a  big  spot  on  the  back,  and  it  seldom  reaches 
a  weight  of  eight  ounces.  It  swarms  on  the  eastern  coast  during 
the  hot  months  of  July  and  August,  and  is  caught  even  in  Sep- 
tember . 

In  the  Harlem  and  East  Rivers  and  in  Long  Island  Sound,  where 
I  have  caught  them,  they  run  very  small  indeed  and  it  requires  great 
patience  and  small  hooks  to  take  them  in.  They  keep  up  a  constant 
nibblmg  and  the  angler  is  so  busy  pulling  his  line  up  every  minute 
or  two  that  he  wishes  he  had  not  fallen  in  with  the  silvery  pests. 

Like  the  bergall  the  "  spot "  bites  at  the  hook  with  a  sly  tentative 
nibble  and  immediately  darts  away,  as  is  proved  by  their  being  fre- 
quently hooked  in  the  back,  sides  or  tail.  But  there  is  this  differ- 
ence between  cunners  and  Lafayettes;  the  latter  are  good  to  eat  and 
the  former  are  worthless.  I  know  of  no  daintier  morsel  than  a  big 
fresh  Lafayette,  nicely  fried  and  served  hot.  They  are  the  most 
tasteful  of  all  the  salt  water  pan-fish  with  the  exception  of  the 
Stonington  eel. 

Few  would  care  to  go  out  especially  for  spots,  but  if  you  do,  have 
a  lot  of  fine,  sharp  hooks,  put  four  on  your  line  above  a  light  sinker 
bait  with  small  pieces  of  clam  or  sandworm,  and  fish  on  the  first  of 
the  flood  or  at  dead  high  water  in  about  fourteen  feet.  It  is  great 
fun  to  take  them  with  a  very  light  rod.  They  can  be  caught  in 
great  numbers  at  Rockaway,  Cape  May,  Atlantic  City,  in  fact, 
everywhere  on  the  coast. 


CHAPTEK  XYIII. 


The  Snapping  Mackerel — Genus  temnodon — (De  Kay.) 


The  snapping  mackerel  is  a  small  rakish  looking  fish,  swift  in  his 
movements  as  an  arrow,  dai-ting  about  in'  schools,  near  and  some- 
times on  the  sm-face  of  the  water.  It  is  claimed  by  some  that  they 
are  the  young  of  the  bluefish,  and  though  this  assumption  seems 
substantiated  by  the  shape,  color  and  habits  of  the  "  snapper,"  yet  I 
do  not  believe  it  is  an  established  fact. 

In  foiin,  the  snapping  mackerel  is  long^  tapering  and  trisa,  much 
like  the  bluefish  in  shape  and  disposition  of  his  fins.  The  eye 
is  quite  large  and  the  mouth  armed  with  teeth.  In  color  it  presents 
every  shade  of  metallic  blue,  deeper  on  the  dorsal,  lightening  to 
frosted  silver  on  the  ventral. 

The  snapper  makes  his  ai^pearance  in  August  and  does  not  take 
any  lure  after  September.  The  fish  gives  great  fun  to  the  angler 
and  affords  considerable  room  for  skill.  He  can  be  taken  only  in 
stiU  water,  and  I  have  never  caught  one  in  a  tide-way.  At  the  toj) 
of  the  tide  is  the  time,  giving,  may  be,  two  hours'  fishing,  during 
which  a  hundred  or  more  can  be  landed  if  there  are  many  snappers 
about. 

A  light  and  flexible  rod  is  required,  a  very  smooth  running  reel, 
and  thin  line  and  swivel  sinker.  The  hook,  which  may  be  quite 
large,  is  fastened  to  about  a  foot  of  gut  and  baited  with  shedder 
-crab,  or  if  it  is  found  that  this  is  wasted  too  rapidly,  any  bait  lure 


nSHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  87 

is  just  as  seniceable.  The  leader  is  cast  out  about  forty  feet,  and 
while  the  bait  is  kept  about  three  feet  below  the  surface  is  rapidly 
reeled  in.  The  sna2:)per  makes  a  dash,  and  is  caught  and  reeled  in  as 
fast  as  possible. 

The  snapper  very  frequently  escapes  by  his  quick  movements,  often 
jumi^ing-  the  hook.  Although  a  small  fish,  rarely  exceeding  a  pound, 
he  resists  stoutly  and  comes  toward  the  boat  with  a  soi-t  of  fluiTy  and 
splash  very  exhilarating  to  the  fisherman.  I  have  alway  taken  them 
most  successfully  on  bright,  clear  days,  and  only  on  the  last  two 
hours  of  the  flood  tide.  It  is  a  strange  fact  that  under  the  operculum 
of  almost  every  snapper  is  found  a  fish  louse,  generally  half  an  inch 
long;  I  have  naver  seen  them  m  any  other  fish  save  the  small  striped 
bass.  Besides  being  so  gamy  and  exciting  a  fish  to  catch,  the  snap- 
ping mackerel  is  very  palatable. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


The  Shad — Alom  aapidiadma — (Wilson — Storer.) 


The  fish  this  paper  treats  of  makes  up  the  tail  end  of  the  amateur 
angler's  list,  and  yet  the  capture  of  the  first  shad  in  the  North  River 
is  heralded  in  all  the  Metropolitan  journals.  The  fish  itself  is  re- 
ceived in  Fulton  market  by  a  deputation  of  citizens,  then  decorated 
with  ribbons  and  hung  up  to  the  admiring  gaze  of  hundreds. 

The  shad  does  not,  however,  possess  the  same  interest  for  the  fish- 
erman as  does  the  mossbunker. 

The  shad  is  found  all  along  the  Atlantic  Coast  from  Florida  to- 
Newport;  in  fact  the  fish  is  seen  all  over  the  world;  in  European 
livers  and  in  China  waters. 

The  migration  of  shad  commences  in  Spring  at  the  Florida  coast, 
and  as  the  fish  move  northward  they  increase  in  size  and  in  flavor. 
Those  which  first  reach  the  New  York  market  come  from  the  shores 
of  the  CaroHnas.  The  first  North  River  shad  was  caught  and  taken 
to  Fulton  market  April  10.  From  that  date  onward  to  July  1st  the 
fish  are  taken  by  thousands  and  get  to  be  very  cheap.  At  the  close 
of  the  run  Connecticut  River  shad  are  brought  in  and  bring  fancy 
prices,  as  they  have  a  far  more  delicate  flavor  than  those  called 
Southern  shad. 

The  shad  run  in  from  the  ocean  up  to  fresh  water  to  deposit  their 
spawn,  and  advantage  is  taken  of  this  great  movement  to  take  them 
in  huge  nets  set  across  the  current.  Seine  nets,  stake  nets,  drift  nets. 


71 


FISHES   OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  ^1 

and  pomid  nets  are  all  used  successfully  at  the  mouth  of  the  Dela- 
ware, at  the  Potomac  Falls,  in  the  Hudson,  and  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Connecticut  River. 

In  appearaace  the  shad  is  a  heavy  and  broad  fish,  with  rather 
small  head  and  mouth,  large  eyes,  forked  tail  and  small  fin  develop- 
ment. His  body  is  covered  with  a  heavy  coat  of  large  scales  rather 
loosely  held  on,  and  when  he  is  first  drawn  from  the  water  his  scaly 
armor  is  resplendent  with  every  tint,  but  this  beautiful  coloring 
soon  fades. 

But  the  chief  wonder  about  the  fish  only  comes  to  light  when  you 
eat  him  It  is  his  prodigious  amount  of  bones.  Some  one  once 
said  that  if  all  the  bones  of  a  six  pound  shad  were  placed  end  to  end 
in  a  continuous  straight  line  they  would  go  twice  around  the  world, 
and  if  they  were  jailed  up  in  a  heap,  it  would  form  a  pyramid  two 
feet  taller  than  the  pyramid  of  Cheops.  But  it  is  very  apparent 
that  these  statements  are  largely  exaggerations,  evidently  induced 
by  a  sharp  attack  of  bone  in  the  throat.  Still  the  shad  has  more 
bones  in  comparison  with  equal  weight  of  other  fish  than  any  four 
other  salt  water  fish  taken  together.  Shad  is  one  of  the  many  fa- 
vorite dishes  of  the  bluefish,  and  it  has  always  been  a  standing  mar- 
vel to  me  how  the  bluefish  could  eat  him  and  not   choke    to  death. 

,The  interest  that  the  shad  has  for  anglers  lies  in  the  tact  that  he 
is  a  surface  biter,  and  will  take  the  artificial  fly.  Fishermen  who 
have  caught  the  shad  in  this  way  name  the  following  flies  as  the 
most  successful:  a  white  miller,  a  red  fly  with  red  wings,  a  scarlet 
fly  with  mottled-brown  wings.  The  hooks  used  are  numbers  one, 
two  or  three.  Limerick.  The  rod  and  reel  are  the  same  as  are  used 
in  striped  bass  fishing  of  the  lighter  variety.  This  applies,  of  course, 
also  to  the  line,  which  should  be  a  least  one  hundred  feet  in  length. 
The  best  fly-fishing  for  shad  can  be  enjoyed  on  the  Connecticut 
River  in  early  June.  It  is  the  correct  thing  to  cast  the  lures  in 
some  deep  and  silent  pool  at  the  base  of  a  rapid,  or  in  the  rapids 
themselves. 

The  shad  run  in  weight  from  two  to  twelve  pounds,  the  average 
being  about  four  pounds.  As  I  write  this  at  the  beginning  of  the 
shad  run,  I  learn  that  they  are  drawing  a  seine  net  every  morning  in 


^2'  FISHES   OF   THE  EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST. 

the  North  River  at  the  foot  of  125th  street.  As  it  is  done  at  three 
in  the  morning  I  have  not  verified  the  report,  but  there  is  little  doubt 
that  it  is  true. 

There  is  a  celebrated  method  of  cooking  the  shad  which  I  will 
mention  here.  This  dish  is  known  everywhere  as  "planked  shad." 
A  large  fish  is  taken  and  split  along  the  belly  from  head  to  tail,  it  is 
then  fastened  with  the  meat  side  outward  to  a  smooth  oak  plank  and 
slowly  roasted  before  an  open  coal  fire.  It  is  then,  when  nicely 
cooked  (and  right  here  lies  the  delicacy  and  success  of  the  opera- 
tion) served  up  with  lemon,  on  a  hot  dish,  having  been  previously 
buttered  and  seasoned.  The  great  place  for  the  "  planked  shad " 
lised  to  be  Gloucester  Island  in  the  Delaware  River,  nearly  oppo- 
site Philadelphia. 

Enthusiasm  in  fly-fishing  for  shad  has  to  a  great  extent  died  out^ 
principally  because  where  it  can  be  enjoyed,  striped  bass,  the  mon- 
arch of  the  salt  waters,  are  also  to  be  caught,  and  again  because  the 
shad  is  not  very  gamy;  not  as  gamy  as  you  might  expect  from  his 
bones. 

In  closing  this  essay  on  salt  water  fishes  of  the  North  Eastern 
Coast,  the  writer  cannot  have  been  free  from  error  and  omission 
in  such  a  brief  notice  of  so  many  fish.  But  I  trust  that  all  matters 
of  interest  to  anglers,  and  such  little  information  as  lays  in  my 
power  to  give  that  may  assist  any  of  the  angling  brotherhood,  have 
been  at  least  clearly  set  forth.  Of  course  it  would  be  impossible  for 
any  one  man  to  have  a  wide  and  accurate  knowledge  of  every  salt 
water  coast  fish,  or  even  of  the  game  fishes,  and  wherever  my  own 
acquain*;ance  with  the  facts  has  been  small  or  wanting,  I  have  not 
he«itat»>-i  to  seek  the  standard  authorities  for  verification,  or  to  draw 
from  t'*^  columns  of  The  American  Anglee,  such  new  points  as. 
were  a  >  once  interesting  and  authentic.  I  do  not  lay  down  my  pen 
without  asking  both  the  indulgence  and  kindly  criticism  of  salt 
water  anglers. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


THE   CRAB  AND  THE   LOBSTER. 


The  Crab — Calinectus  hastatus — (Ordway.) 


.  In  the  months  of  June,  July,  August  and  September,  along  the 
Southern  coast  in  early  summer,  later  in  the  Delaware  and  on  the 
Jersey  coast,  and  toward  the  close  of  summer  in  Long  Island 
Sound,  in  the  upper  bay  and  its  estuaries,  and  along  the  New  England 
coast  the  crab  advances  from  deep  water  in  vast  numbers.  I  do  not 
hesitate  to  assert  that  in  the  crab  season  there  are  three  crabs  caught 
for  every  fish  brought  to  market.  In  New  Jersey,  on  the  banks  of 
the  Shrewsbury  River,  there  is  an  immense  crab  farm  whence  thou- 
sands are  shipped  to  the  markets  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia. 
The  little  creeks  and  streams  that  run  in  Long  Island  Sound  make 
the  body  of  water  a  perfect  paradise  for  the  pugnacious  crab.  But 
of  all  places  to  catch  crabs  the  best  is  in  the  Harlem  River,  and  in 
New  Jersey,  Salem  Creek. 

The  reason  why  the  crab  is  included  in  these  essays  is  that  every 
salt-water  angler  goes  crabbing,  and  if  he  goes  once  he  will  go 
again.  Even  people  who  do  not  care  for  fishing  proper  will  go 
crabbing,  probably  because  they  think  the  yield  is  paying  them  for 
their  time.  Yes,  the  crab  is  a  game  "fish,"  but,  strange  to  say,  his 
fighting  qualities  do  not  assert  themselves  until  he  is  in  the  basket, 
or  just  before  you  put  him  in.  In  fact,  he  is  so  game  that  I  have 
seen  a  blue  crab  seize  a  finger  of  some  incautious  angler  and  then 
jump  out  into  the  water  forty  feet  away.  This  occurrence,  which 
.^y  the  way  is  not  very  uncommon,  took  so   little  time  that  it  is  now 


94  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST. 

impossible  to  say  whether  the  crab  yelled  and  jumped  himself,  or 
whether  the  angler  uttered  the  Indian  war  whoop  and  threw  the  crab» 
The  latter  is  the  most  probable. 

Crabs  begin  to  swarm  into  the  shallow  bays  and  creeks  of  the 
coast  about  the  first  of  June.  When  they  have  reached  their  sum- 
mer home  they  all  remain  quiet  for  a  space.  Then  each  crab  selects 
some  spot  best  suited  to  his  taste  and  becomes  motionless,  and  soon, 
his  upper  shell  shows  signs  of  swelling  about  its  back  ed.ge.  After 
a  time  this  edge  becomes  wholly  freed,  and  now  the  crab  must  free 
his  claws  and  legs  from  the  hard  shell.  This  he  is  enabled  to  do  by 
an  opportune  softening  of  the  muscles.  The  crab  withdrawing 
from  his  shell  settles  down  in  the  soft  mud  or  sand  and  does 
its  best  to  escape  observation,  for  it  is  now  in  a  helpless  condition. 
Where  there  is  a  great  deal  of  eel-grass  and  sea-cabbage,  as  in  the 
Harlem  River,  the  crab  will  cover  himself  in  it  and  it  will  take  a 
practiced  searcher  to  spy  out  his  retreat.  Along  the  Harlem  mud 
flats  at  low  tide  the  boys  go  "treading  for  soft  shells,"  and  gener- 
ally get  more  cuts  on  their  feet  from  old  bottles  and  tomato-can& 
than  soft  shell  crabs ;  though  a  dozen  are  often  taken  in  this  way  on 
one  tide.  About  twelve  hours  after  it  has  cast  its  shell  the  soft  skin 
with  which  it  was  first  covered  has  become  like  writing  paper, 
crackling  like  it  when  compressed. 

Twelve  hours  or  so  after,  this  skin  has  become  like  buckram  in 
texture,  and  on  account  of  this  the  crab  is  called  a  "  buckram,"  as 
before  it  was  called  a  "  paper  "  crab.  In  all  those  stages  the  crab  is 
helpless,  but  after  the  lapse  of  forty-eight  hours  he  is  again  able  to 
take  care  of  himself. 

The  above  are  approximately  the  periods  in  which  this  strange 
transformation  takes  place,  but  it  is  dependent  to  a  certain  extent 
upon  the  weather.  A  disagreeable  spell  will  retard  it  for  days.  The 
best  of  all  crabs  to  eat  are  the  soft  shells  ;  they  are  fried  in  butter, 
having  been  previously  rolled  in  cracker  crumbs. 
*  Now  as  to  catching  the  wary  fellows.  This  is  best  done  in  shal- 
low water  not  over  ten  feet  in  depth,  and  from  a  skiff.  A  round- 
bottomed  boat  on  a  crabbing  expedition  will  only  prove  an  incon- 
venience.     Have   about  a  half  dozen  lengths  of  cord  not  more  than. 


FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST.  95 

fifteen  feet  long  and  tie  one  end  of  each  about  some  pieces  of  lean 
meat ;  let  this  sink  to  the  bottom,  if  it  will  not  sink  put  on  a  lead 
sinker  or  any  other  heavy  thing  that  is  handy.  When  the  bait  has 
found  bottom  you  will  know  when  a  crab  has  taken  the  bait  by  the 
straightening  out  of  the  line.  Now  haul  up  the  bait  slowly  and 
evenly  ;  the  gluttonous  crab  will  still  cling  to  it,  and  just  when  you 
can  see  the  bait  dimly  through  the  water  and  the  crab  waving  his 
claws  about  it,  lower  the  scap  net  from  one  side,  gradually  working 
it  under  the  crab.  As  soon  as  he  sees  you  he  will  let  go,  but  if  the 
man  with  the  scap  net  is  quick  and  steady  the  crab  will  go  into  the 
net  every  time. 

The  best  bait  of  all  is  a  sheepshead  with  the  skin  taken  off, 
and  to  secure  one  you  will  have  to  speak  beforehand  to  your  butcher. 
The  next  best  bait  is  meat  without  any  fat,  else  you  will  have  trou- 
ble sinking  it,  and  when  you  are  unable  to  get  either  of  these  baits 
fish  heads  make  an  excellent  substitute.  The  bigger  your  hand-net 
the  better  for  use  ;  have  the  handle  not  over  five  feet  long  for  boat 
fishing.  Paint  net  and  all  sea-green.  The  best  stage  of  the  tide  to 
catch  crabs  is  while  the  water  is  rising.  At  the  first  of  the  flood  tl  • 
crabs  come  in  on  the  flats  from  the  channels.  As  the  season  draws 
to  a  close  the  crabs  improve  in  flavor. 

Even  if  the  angler  is  indifferent  on  the  subject  of  crab-fishing, 
what  would  he  do  if  he  had  not  that  bait  of  all  baits,  the  shedder- 
crab,  by  which  is  known  the  crab  just  ready  to  cast  his  shell.  You 
can  readily  detect  a  shedder-crab  among  a  lot  of  hard  fellows  by 
pinching  the  under  side  of  the  two  side  joints.  If  these  are  very- 
weak  and  break  easily,  you  can  take  off  all  the  shell  and  find  a  thin 
blue  skin  underneath  it.  I  advise  every  one  who  can  to  go  crabbing, 
it  is  great  fun,  and  if  the  crabs  are  plentiful  you  are  apt  to  catch, 
more  than  you  can  carry  home. 

The  Lobster — HomainjjS  americanus — (Edwards.) 

Are  you  surprised,  indulgent  reader  of  the  angler's  craft  ?    Well, 

I  don't  wonder  that  you  are.     Faith!  I  would  be  myself   if   I  were 

you.     You  have  read  of  the  peaceful  crab  and  how  he   is   caught — 

but  the  lobster,  among  the  game  fishes  of  the  coast !  what  next  ?  A» 


^  FISHES   OF   THE  EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST. 

for  being  a  catchable  inhabitant  of  New  York  water  and  all  the  way 
northward,  that  he  is.  Few  New  York  angler's  know  that  within 
thirty  minutes  ride  from  their  offices  they  can  have  delightful  sport 
lobster  fishing.  But  from  Port  Morris  all  along  the  beautiful  shores 
of  Long  Island  Sound,  in  the  quiet  little  coves  and  bays  that  indent 
its  either  shore,  lobsters  can  be  caught  in  season  by  the  following 
method: 

You  first  want  a  sound,  trustworthy  skiff,  next  two  anchors,  one 
for  the  bow  and  one  for  the  stern.  The  most  important  thing  is 
the  lobster  net.  This  should  be  made  of  stout  linen  cord;  the  ring 
of  quarter  inch  wrought  iron  six  feet  in  circumference.  This  ring  will 
cost,  if  you  go  to  some  friendly  blacksmith,  about  twenty  five  cents ; 
to  this  ring  the  cord  should  be  netted  until  the  net  is  two  and  one 
balf  feet  deep.  These  nets  are  very  expensive  if  bought  in  a  tackle 
store,  but  the  fisherman  if  he  takes  real  pleasure  in  his  art  will  net 
his  own  lobster  net  ;  it  will  cost  him  then  about  a  dollar  and  a  half. 
The  next  thing  is  the  bait.  This  consists  of  two  salted  menhaden 
(another  exemplification  of  the  manifold  uses  of  that  fish)  which  you 
can  buy  of  some  fisherman  on  shore,  either  for  love,  or,  that  failing, 
for  five  cents  apiece.  Tie  across  the  net  a  string  diameter;  tie  to 
this  central  string  the  two  mossbunkers  ;  now  put  about  ten 
.pounds  of  stone  in  the  bottom  of  the  net;  this  don't  weigh  much 
■when  in  the  water,  and  is  necessary  to  take  the  net  down.  Now 
have  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  light  strong  rope  ;  fix  this 
to  the  net  in  the  same  manner  in  which  the  small  boy  ties  his  kite 
string  to  the  "belly-band"  of  the  kite.  Go  out  where  you  see  lob- 
ster pot  floats  (be  careful  to  keep  out  of  range  of  the  professional 
lobster  fisherman  who  owns  them),  at  the  first  of  the  flood  or  at 
the  last  two  hours  of  high  tide,  let  down  your  net  in  ninety  or  a 
hundred  feet  of  water,  and  while  you  wait  to  haul  up  the  net,  cut 
half  a  dozen  little  wooden  pegs,  about  an  inch  long,  and  put  them 
in  a  convenient  place. 

After  the  lapse  of  ten  or  fifteen  minutes  haul  up  the  net  ;  if  it  has 
a  lobster  in  it  it  will  be  a  heavy  job,  and  if  it  has  not  it  will  also 
be  a  heavy  job.  Suppose  you  have  one;  bringing  the  net  over  the 
iboat  take  the  bottom  of  the  net  and  turn  lobster  and  all  out  on  the 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  97 

bottom  of  the  boat.  There  must,  be  two  on  a  lobster-catching  trip, 
for  this  reason  :  the  lobster  immediately  on  being  released  from  the 
folds  of  the  net  rises  on  his  tail,  waves  his  massive  claws  in  the  air 
and  makes  a  vicious  attack  on  the  nearest  man.  He  must  coolly 
await  it,  and  just  when  the  lobster  is  going  to  seize  his  leg  quietly  put 
a  foot  on  each  claw.  Hold  the  lobster  prisoner  thus  while  your  as* 
sistant  takes  a  wooden  peg  and  drives  it  behind  the  socket  cf  the 
claw,  thus  rendering  this  formidable  weapon  harmless ;  let  him 
fasten  the  other  claw  in  the  same  way  and  now  the  lobster  can  do 
no  harm  ;  by  this  time  the  net  ought  to  be  pulled  up  again.  Where 
there  are  lobsters  this  sport  is   exciting  and   very    profitable. 

I  remember  one  such  trip  I  made  in  August  years  ago  with  a 
neighbor.  We  went  out  from  Port  Morris  in  a  little  red  skiff,  the 
the  bottom  of  which  had  been  worn  completely  through  by  the 
rubbing  of  the  heel  against  the  stretchers.  Through  these  holes  the 
clear  water  of  the  Sound  bubbled  up  like  a  gushing  spring,  and  we 
had  for  bailer  a  cigar  box  lid.  In  the  intervals  of  bailing  we  kept 
s.  lookout  for  the  boatman  on  shore,  who  was  known  to  be  the 
possessor  of  a  long  range  shot  gun,  and  he  would  have  used  it  if  he 
had  known  we  were  lobster  fishing  near  his  pots.  Well,  we  caught 
three  lobsters  and  lost  both  anchor  ropes.  The  lobsters  made  up 
for  it,  however,  as  one  of  them  weighed  six  pounds  and  a  half,  the 
largest  one  I  ever  saw.  One  of  the  others  weighed  four  and  a  half 
pounds  and  the  other  two  ;  so  this  was  not  a  bad  score.  It  could 
not  be  duplicated  to-day,  however,  in  the  same  waters,  as  the  infernal 
blasting  over  the  supposed  wreck  of  the  "  Hussar"  has  settled  all 
the  Port  Morris  fishing.  But  at  Pelham  and  from  there  up  to 
Maine,  lobster  fishing  can  be  had  in  profusion.  There  is  only  one 
more  thing  to  be  said,  and  that  is  to  caution  lest  the  heavy  net  pulls 
the  fisherman  overboard,  and  moreover,  put  all  lobsters  under  ten 
and  one  half  inches  long  back  in  their  element  as  the  law  directs. 


THE  FISHES  OP  THE  EAST  FLOEIDA  COAST. 


By  S.  C.  CLARKE. 


CHAPTER  I. 


The  coasts  of  the  peninsula  of  Florida  afford  a  great  variety^ 
of  species  of  fish,  and  probably  a  greater  variety  of  valuable  food 
fishes  than  can  be  found  in  any  one  region  in  the  United  States. 

We  find  some  migratory  species  that  are  common  on  the  Northern 
coast,  suet  as  the  striped  bass,  sea  bass,  bluefish,  sheepshead,  weak- 
fish.  There  are  others  whose  range  is  not  usually  farther  North 
than  the  capes  of  Delaware  ;  as  the  black  and  red  drum.  Others, 
which  are  local  and  stationary  in  their  habits  ;  such  as  the  groupera 
and  snappers.  And  others  again,  of  a  more  tropical  character,  which 
only  appear  on  the  Florida  coast  in  warm  weather,  and  whose  home 
is  in  more  southern  latitudes  ;  as  the  tarpum,  cavalli  and  ladyfish. 

These  species  are  abundant  in  their  season,  and  many  of 
them  are  of  the  best  quality  on  the  table ;  for  instance,  the 
pompano,  which  takes  its  place  among  the  three  best  fishes  of  the- 
American  Continent ;  the  other  two  being,  in  my  judgment,  the  sal- 
mon of  the  East  coast  and  the  whitefish  of  the  great  lakes.  Tastes- 
differ,  and  some  may  dissent  from  this  opinion,  but  having  eaten  of 
these  fish  on  the  shores  of  their  native  waters,  I  give  this  as  my^ 
verdict. 

Nowhere  in  our  broad  country  can  the  angler  find  greater  variety 
of  game,  or  more  or  better  sport  than  on  the  coasts  of  Florida.     la 


100  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

an  experience  of  more  tho.n  fifty  years  as  an  angler,  reaching  from. 
Canada  to  Florida  and  from  Massachusetts  to  Colorado,  the  writer 
has  found  no  region  where  fish  were  so  abundant  as  on  this  coast. 
This  abundance  has  existed  from  the  earliest  period  in  which  Florida 
^was  known  to  Europeans. 

Jean  Ribault  entered  the  St.  Johns  River  on  the  first  of  May, 
1562,  and  on  that  account  called  it  "  The  River  of  May."  He  writes; 
^*  We  found  it  as  we  went,  to  still  increase  in  depth  and  largenesse, 
boyling  and  roaring  through  the  multitudes  of  all  kinds  of  fish." 

Again  :  "  It  is  a  country  full  of  havens,  rivers  and  islands,  of  such 
fruitfulness  as  cannot  by  tongue  be  expressed,  and  so  many  sortes  of 
.fishes  that  ye  may  take  them  without  net  or  angle  so  many  as  ye 
will  ;  also  great  abundance  of  pearls,  which  they'take  out  of  oysters, 
whereof  is  taken  along  the  river  side  and  on  the  marshes,  in  so  mar- 
velous abundance  as  is  scant  credible." 

The  fish  and  oysters  remain  to  this  day,  but  the  pearls  are  not 
abundant. 

Among  the  natural  productions  of  Florida,  Ribault  mentions  the 
orange;  this  is  worth  recording,  as  most  modern  writers  assert  that  this 
tree  was  introduced  by  the  Spaniards.  It  was  probably  the  wild  orange 
tiiat  these  voyagers  found,  as  vast  groves  of  the  bitter  and  sour  va- 
rieties formerly  covered  thousands  of  acres  of  the  peninsula,  much 
of  which  have  been  removed.  It  was  appropriate  that  in  this  fa- 
vored land  the  sour  orange  should  be  placed  near  the  fish  atd  oysters, 
for  which  its  juice  affords  the  proper  sauce. 

Captain  Bernard  Romans,  an  engineer  oflicer,  who  was  employed 
by  the  British  Government  during  their  occupation  of  Florida^ 
1765-80,  in  surveying  this  coast,  in  his  "  Concise  Natural  History  of 
Florida,"  New  York,  1775,  thus  writes  of  the  fisheries  : 

*'  The  whole  of  the  west  coast  of  East  Florida  is  covered  with 
fishermen's  huts  and  tiakes  ;  these  are  built  by  the  Spanish  tisner- 
^nen  from  Havana,  who  come  annually  to  this  coast  to  the  number 
of  thirty  sail,  and  one  or  two  visit  Rio  d'Ais,  or  Indian  River,  and 
other  places  on  the  east  coast.  The  principal  fish  here,  of  which  the 
Spaniards  make  up  their  cargoes,  is  the  red  drum,  called  in  East 
Florida  a  bass      They  also  salt  a   quantity  of  fish   which   they  call 


% 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  103 

pompanos,  for  which  they  get  a  price  three  times  as  high  as  for  other 
fish.  A  few  soles,  sea  trout,  and  the  roe  of  mullet  and  black  drum 
make  up  the  remainder  of  their  cargoes.  These  roes  are  dried  and 
smoked,  and  used  instead  of  caviare  by  the  Spaniards,  who  are  very 
fond  of  them." 

It  may  be  added  that  these  mullet  roes  are  still  prepared  for  sale 
on  the  east  coast,  being  much  used  by  the  Spaniards  and  Minorcans 
of  St.  Augustine.  My  host  at  Halifax  Inlet,  B.  C.  Pacetti,  prepares 
many  of  them  every  summer,  and  I  have  found  them  to  be  a  savory 
relish  for  my  lunch  when  out  fishing. 

Captain  Romans  says  of  the  Indian  River : 

**  It  abounds  so  mucn  m  fish,  that  a  person  may  sit  on  the  bank 
and  stick  them  with  a  knife  or  sharp  stick,  as  they  swim  by.  i  have 
frequently  shot  from  four  to  twelve  mullets  at  one  shot ;  nay,  our 
boys  used  to  go  alongside  the  vessel  in  the  boat  and  kill  the  catfish 
with  a  hatchet.  In  St.  Augustine  the  fishermen  used  to  allow  people 
who  brought  a  real  (12^  cents)  to  take  as  many  fish  as  they  pleased 
out  of  the  boats." 

Romans  has  the  peculiarity  of  using  the  small  letter  i,  to  express 
the  personal  pronoun.  We  give  the  following  list  of  the  fishes  of 
the  Florida  coasts : 
"  Kingfish,  barracouta,  tarpom,bonito,  cavallos,  pompanos,  silverfish, 
jewfish,  rockfish,  groupers,  porgys,  red,  gray  and  black  snappers, 
grunts,  mangrove  snappers,  hogtish,  angelfish,  morgatefish,  dog-snap- 
pers, yellowtails,  muttonfish,  mullets,  murray,  parrotfish,  sproats,  red 
and  blackjdrum,  bonefish,  sharks,  stingrays,  and  an  immense  variety 
of  others,  all  excellent  in  their  kinds,  and  we  may  with  safety  eat  of 
of  all  fish  caught  on  the  Florida  shore,  unless  it  be  hogfish  taken  on 
the  outer  reef,  fori  have  heard  of  one  of  this  kind  having  sickened 
8ome  people;  but  i  have  always  eaten  that  delicate  fish  with  safety." 

With  the  west,  or  gulf  coast  of  Florida  I  am  unacquainted  ;  but  I 
have  passed  two  or  three  months  of  twelve  winters  on  the  south-east 
coast,  and  have  been  out  fishing  in  my  boat  nearly  every  day  in 
company  with  one  of  the  oldest  and  best  fishermen  of  that  region, 
Mr.  B.  C.  Pacetti,  some  of  whose  knowledge  I  may  have  picked  up,. 
In  my  first  season  I  used  a  hand-line^  like  the  patives,  but  soon  aban- 


104  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

doned  it  for  the  rod  and  reel,  -which  if  it  does  not  take  more  fish, 
certainly  affords  more  sport. 

Having  no  market  near  Mosquito  Inlet,  where  I  lived,  we  never 
cared  to  take  more  fish  than  could  be  used  in  one  family.  If  we  did, 
they  were  fed  to  the  dogs,  pigs  or  poultry,  all  of  which  live  princi- 
pally on  sea  food.  So  to  use  sheepshead,  a  fish  which  brings  from 
twentj-five  to  fifty  cents  per  pound  in  New  York,  seemed  at  first 
wastetul;  but  at  tne  inlet  they  are  so  abundant  m  tneir  season  that 
from  fifty  to  one  hundred  might  be  killed  in  a  day  by  a  single  line, 
if  the  fisherman  seriously  sets  himself  at  work  and  v/as  fishing  "  for 
count." 

Fish  of^most  kinds  being  most  abundant  near  the  shore  where  the 
bottom  is  covered  with  snags  and  roots  of  the  mangrove,  the  hooks 
often  get  fast  and  are  lost.  In  many  places  the  bottom  is  paved 
with  oyster  shells,  which  cut  off  a  fine  line.  Therefore  silkworm 
gut  is  not  suited  for  this  fishing,  nor  is  it  necessary  for  these  bold 
biting  fish.  Sharks  cut  off  many  lines,  and  rays  break  them,  so  that 
a  line  of  100  yards  long  is  generally  used  up  in  one  season. 

We  lose  five  or  six  hooks  daily,  on  an  average,  and  some  sinkers. 
for  red  bass,  salt  water  trout,  groupers,  snappers,  and  cavalli,  I 
use  New  York  bass  hooks,  Nos.  1  and  2.  For  sheepshead,  the  Yir- 
ginia  pattern,  Nos.  6  and  7  answers  best,  being  made  of  thick  wire 
which  resists  the  powerful  jaws  of  that  fish — the  same  hook  for  the 
drum.  For  small  fish,  such  as  blackfish^  whiting,  pigfish,  etc.,  I 
use  the  Virginia  hook  Nos.  6  and  7,  which  are  strong  enough  to  hold 
a  good  sized  bass.  As  the  numbers  and  sizes  of  hooks  vary,  I  remark 
that  these  figures  are  taken  from  the  catalogue  of  a  fishing  tackle 
house  in  New  York. 

A  Cuttyhnnk  Knen  line,  15-thread,  300  feet  long,  will  hold  and 
kill  most  of  the  fish  encountered  on  this  coast.  Of  course  a  600 
pound  jewfish,  a  tarpum  six  feet  lowg,  or  a  ray  six  feet  across,  wil 
get  away  with  the  tackle.  Reel,  a  multiplyer,  of  brass  or  German 
silver,  to  bold  100  yards,  provided  with  a  drag  to  increase  resistance. 
Thumb  stalls  of  heavy  knitted  yam  are  necessary,  to  save  cut  and 
bruised  fingers  in  a  fight  with  a  runaway  fish. 

I  find  that  a  bamboo  rod  eight  and  a-half  to  nine  feet  long,  in 
three,  or  better  in  two  pieces,  will  stand  the  hard  work  of  three  or 


riSHES   or   THE   EAST   ATLA^'TIC   COAST. 


105 


four  winters  in  Florida;  it  is  light  and  handy,  costs  only  four  or  five 
dollars,  and  will  last  as  long  and  kill  as  many  and  as  big  fish,  as  a 
rod  costing  twenty-five  dollars.  Other  necessary  tools  are  a  landing 
net  for  sheepshead  and  small  bass,  and  a  large  gaff  hook  with  a 
handle  four  or  five  feet  long.  A  pocket  revolver  for  shooting  sharks 
and  big  rays,  I  have  seen  used  in  a  boat. 

As  most  of  the  fishing  is  done  from  a  boat  in  shallow  water,  a 
light  flat  bottomed  skiff  ten  or  twelve  feet  long  and  from  two  and 
a-balf  to  three  feet  wide,  is  most  conveniej^t. 

For  rod-fishing,  one  angler  is  enough  in  a  boat,  the  stern  "being 
the  only  comfortable  place  to  fish  from.  Of  hand-line  fishermen 
three  or  four  could  be  accommodated  in  the  same  space.  The  most 
essential  thing  of  all,  is  to  have  a  boatman  who  is  handy  with  a  cast- 
ing net;  for  on  this  depends  your  supply  of  mullet  bait.  Your  boat 
should  be  anchored  at  bow  and  stern,  so  as  to  hold  her  in  position 
against  wind  and  tide  ;  a  few  feet  one  way  or  the  other  often  makes 
great  difference  in  the  catch. 

I  extract  from  my  journal,  kept  for  ten  years  in  Florida,  the  fol- 
lowing record  of  my  catch  of  different  kinds  of  fish.  In  some  seasons 
one  Kmd  may  be  scarce,  in  the  next  it  may  be  plenty.  These  years 
show  about  the  average. 


1870. 

NUMBER.  W'GHT, 

Sheepshead. . ..109  436  lbs 

Red  Bass 40  202  " 

Salt  water  trout     6     24  *' 

Snappers 6     18  *' 

Cavalli 6     22  " 

Groupers 7     28  " 

Catfish 24  120  ** 

Sharks   and 

Rays ,.     5  150  " 

Total 213  1006  *' 

Taken    in     27     days    with 
hand  line. 


1876. 

NUMBER.  W'GHT, 

Sheepshead 90    340  lbs 

Red  Bass 60 

Gronpers 9 

Snappers 7 

Salt  water  trout  15 

Pigfish 44 

Whiting 98 

Black  fish  ....125 

Cavalli 4 

Sailor'sChoicei87 
Rays,  Sharks, 
Catfish,  &c.    40 


311" 
37" 
22  " 

44" 
41" 
56" 
60" 

15" 
71  •• 


342" 


Total . 


.679  I  339" 
Taken  in  37  days  with  rod 
and  reel. 


Sheepshead. ..  37 

Red  Bass 25 

Groupers 5 

Snappers 5 

Cavalli 6 

Lady  fish 4 

Salt  water  trout  8 
Black  fish    and 

Bluefish. ...  25 

Whiting 32 

Catfish 62 

Sharks    and 

Rays 3 


1881. 

NUMBER.  W'GHT, 

i85lbs 
128  '• 

21  '• 
16  ♦♦ 

22  •• 

ID   '• 

33  " 


18 

19 

305 

105 


Total 213    862  '• 

Taken  in  21  days  with  rod 
and  reel. 


In  writing  of  the  fishes  of  the  Southern  coast,  we  at  once  meet 

181 


106  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

with  the  difficulty  attending  a  confusion  of  names.  Every  spesies 
has  its  local  name,  and  the  same  is  often  in  different  places  given 
to  different  species.  For  instance  Megalops  thrissoides  \v,  sometimes 
called  jewfish  ,  m  another  locality  it  is  called  tarpom  ;  the  first 
name  belonging  to  a  gigantic  perch,  the  latter  to  a  monster  herring; 
while  in  a  third  place  tlie  name  jewtish  is  applied  to  the  rock- 
grouper. 

Except  the  incomplete  work  of  Dr.  Holbrook  on  the  Fishes  of 
South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  I  have  not  been  able  to  find  anything 
on  this  subject,  save  a  catalogue  by  Dr.  Gill,  and  another  by  Dr 
Storer,  both  I  think  ref  ering  to  South  Carolina.  Some  of  these  spe- 
cies are  mentioned  in  the  great  work  of  Cuvier,  of  others  I  have 
found  no  description. 

Some  species  which  occur  along  the  coast  from  Cape  Cod  to 
Florida,  figure  under  different  names  at  almost  each  degree  of  lati- 
tude ;  such  as  the  striped  bass  or  rockfish,  the  bluefish,  horse  mack- 
erel, skip  jack,  or  tailor  fish.  To  add  to  the  confusion,  it  is  the 
fashion  of  late  to  alter  the  scientific  names  of  the  whole  animal 
creation.  Our  well  known  and  valuable  sheepshead  was  formerly 
Sargus  ovis  ;  the  new  school  of  naturalists  call  him  Archosargus 
prohatocepalus — a  name  long  enough  for  a  whale.  Therefore,  in  the 
absence  of  any  well  recognized  standard  names,  either  scientific  or 
trivial,  we  can  only  give  the  one  in  common  use  where  the  fish  occur?-. 


CHAPTER  ir. 


The  Channel  Bx^s.—Scvsenops  oscellata.~-Gi]l. 


Oalled  red  drum  on  the  Virginia  Coast;  spotted  bass  or  spot,  in  South  Carolina 
red  bass  or  channel  bass,  in  Georgia  and  Florida;  red  fish,  in  New 
Orleans. 


It  is  a  stoutly  built,  thick  bodied  fish,  with  large  head  ;  color  va- 
nes  with  the  water  it  inhabits,  those  taken  in  the  ocean  surf  are  of 
a  golden  hue  on  the  sides  ;  back,  reddish  brown ;  belly,  white; 
taken  in  or  near  fresh  water  they  are  copper  red  j  all  have  the 
black  spots  near  the  tail,  sometimes  three  or  four  in  number. 
Scales,  lajge,  on  a  twenty  pound  fish  the  size  of  a  nickel  coin  and  a 
hoe  is  often  used  to  remove  them.  These  scales  are  used  to  some 
extent  in  Florida  for  ornamental  work. 

In  size  the  red  bass  runs  from  one  pound  weight  to  fifty;  the 
largest  being  taken  in  summer  and  autumn.  Those  of  four  to  six 
pounds  usually  run  in  schools  of  a  dozen  or  more,  and  are  called  "school 
bass."  The  larger  specimens  from  twenty  to  forty  pounds  are  com- 
monly found  singly  or  in  pairs,  and  go  by  the  name  of  "  channel 
bass."  In  the  list  of  fishes  collected  at  Wood's  Holl,  Mass.,  the  red 
bass  do  s  not  occur,  though  some  southern  forms  have  been  found 
there.  Captures  of  this  fish  have  been  reported  at  Barnegat  Bay, 
which  is  perhaps  the  northern  limit  of  its  summer  migration. 

In  the  winter  and  spring  we  find  this  bass  coming  into  the  bays 
and  inlets  with  the  tide  and  rangmg  along  the  shores  and  on  the  flats 
in  search  of  food,  which  consists  of  small  fish,  principally  mullet, 
moUusks  and  Crustacea.  It  is  a  fish  of  omnivorous  and  huge  appe- 
tite, a  bold  biter,  and  has  none  of  the  shyness  of  the  striped  bass, 
frequently  taking  the   bait   alongside  the  boat.  ^  When    anchored 


108  FISHES    OP    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

on  the  sand-flatB  near  the  inlet,  fishing  for  the  schools  of  .bass  as 
they  come  in  "with  the  tide,  I  have  noticed  that  they  will  appear  to 
be  curious  about  the  l)oat,  they  will  approach  and  swim  around  it 
as  if  to  examine  it.  At  such  a  time  nearly  the  whole  school  may 
be  taken,  and  when  a  bass  is  being  on  the  rod  others  will  follow  it 
nearly  to  the  boat. 

During  the  cold  northerly  winds  which  sometimes  prevail  for  two 
or  three  days  in  winter  on  the  Florida  coast,  the  bass  retires  to  deep 
holes,  and  cannot  be  induced  to  bite  until  a  change  of  weather  oc- 
curs. It  is  a  warm  weather  fish,  and  in  the  summer  appears  on  the 
coast  in  immense  numbers  and  of  large  size.  As  the  fishermen  say, 
"  the  surf  is  red  with  them."  At  this  season  it  is  in  its  best  condi- 
tion for  the  table,  being  firm  of  texture  and  well  flavored;  one  of  the 
best  of  the  coast  fishes,  either  boiled,  broiled  in  steaks,  in  a  chowder 
or  fried  as  is  the  usual  method  of  cooking.  A  fish  of  ten  or  fifteen 
pounds  18  about  the  best  size  ;  the  large  ones  are  rather  coarse,  the 
small  ones  have  less  flavor. 

As  a  sporting  or  game  fish  the  rank  of  the  red  bass  is  high.  A 
strong  and  persistent  fighter  when  hooked,  making  long  runs  in  open 
water,  and  not  coming  to  gaff  until  exhausted,  it  is  the  favorite 
object  of  pursuit  to  anglers  on  the  Florida  coast.  -  From  its  open 
Jvay  of  fighting,  if  the  angler  has  one  hundred  yards  of  good  line  on 
his  reel,  and  is  not  impatient,  he  is  pretty  sure  of  killing  his  fish,  up 
to  forty  pounds.  The  hand-line  fisherman  who  works  by  main 
..  '.rength  is  apt  to  lose  the  big  ones. 

The  same  sort  of  tackle  that  is  used  in  Northern  waters  for  striped 
bass,  answers  well  for  the  red  bass,  except  that  a  sinker  of  one  or 
two  ounces  weight  is  used  here  in  casting  from  the  reel,  and  it  is  un- 
necessary to  use  gut  or  delicate  tackle,  and  gut  is  more  apt  to  be  cut 
by  the  oyster  shells  which  cover  the  bottom  in  the  best  places,  than 
a  length  of  line  which  we  use  for  a  snood. 

A  bafls  of  twenty-five  to  forty  pounds  will  consume  from  twenty 
to  forty  minutes  in  the  capture  with  rod  and  reel,  the  old  rule  of 
one  minute  to  the  pound  holding  good  with  this  fish.  The  writer 
has  taken  some  hundreds  in  various  ways — on  the  bottom,  with  a 
float  at  mid-water,  and  on  the  surface  with  spoon  or  feathers — and 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  HI 

conKider8  that  from  its  abundance,  its  free  biting,  and  its  method  of 
fair  fighting  when  hooked,  the  red  bass  is  on  the  whole  the  most 
valuable  of  the  Southern  game  fishes. 

Twenty-five  to  thirty  red  bass  have  been  killed  by  one  rod  in  a 
day  en  the  Halifax  River,  weighing  in  the  aggregate  some  200  to 
350  pounds.,  The  largest  bass  ever  taken  by  the  writer  weighed  thir- 
ty-seven pounds,  and  the  struggle  lasted  about  forty  minutes.  It 
was  taken  from  a  boat,  and  the  fish  towed  us  nearly  a  hundred  yards 
before  it  came  to  gaff.  Its  mate,  weighing  over  twenty-five  pounds, 
was  soon  after  taken  by  my  boatman.  The  next  in  size  captured  by 
me  weighed  thirty  pounds,  and  its  mate,  weighing  twenty-eight 
pounds,  was  hooked  directly  after  by  my  companion  in  the  boat, 
also  a  rod  fisher,  and  the  contest  went  on  for  thirty  or  forty  min- 
utes at  each  end  of  the  boat.  The  mouth  of  the  red  bass  is  tough, 
requiring  a  smart  stroke  to  fasten  the  hook,  but  once  fastened  the 
hold  seldom  gives  way.  I  have  never  fished  in  Florida  waters  in 
summer,  when  the  bass  run  largest,  but  the  hand-line  fishermen  of 
those  parts  tell  of  catching  them  at  that  season  not  unfrequently  of 
the  weight  of  fifty  pounds. 

At  the  Indian  River  Inlet  bass  and  all  other  fish  of  these  waters 
are  found  in  great  abundance,  and  of  larger  size  than  we  find  them 
in  Halifax  Inlet.  In  the  year  1870,  while  fishing  in  the  Indian  River 
we  found  the  fish  so  plenty  that  wo  turned  loose  four-fifths  of  our 
catch,  the  other  fifth  amply  supplying  our  wants. 

In  April  and  May,  when  the  sea  water  is  warm  on  the  beach,  I 
have  found  pleasant  sport  in  wading  out  into  the  surf,  or  near  it, 
and  casting  my  mullet  bait  into  a  depression  or  slough  which  runs 
along  the  shore  just  inside  the  surf.  Here  the  bass  come  in  to  feed 
at  certain  times  of  tide,  and  I  found  that  they  would  make  a  harder 
tight  than  in  the  river  inside  the  inlet,  though  of  about  the  same  size, 
from  four  to  six  pounds.  Sharks  are  plenty  in  the  surf,  but  do  not 
often  come  into  the  sloughs,  for  fear  of  being  left  high  and  dry,  so 
that  one  can  safely  enjoy  the  combined  pleasure  of  angling  and 
bathinor.  There  are  some  old  wrecks  of  vessels  imbedded  in  the 
sand  on  this  shore  ;  the  tides  have  washed  out  deep  holes  about 
these  wrecks,  where  bass,  sheepshead  and  trout  are  found. 

Bands  of  roving  hogs  live  on  the  beach    and   in   the   adjoining 


112  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

scrub,  which  I  found  very  ready  to  steal  any  fish  that  I  left  exposed  ; 
and  once  I  found  a  couple  of  marsh  ponies  devouring  my  bass.  In 
this  region  man,  beast  and  bird  all  live  on  the  fruit  of  the  sea,  and 
there  is  enough  for  all — those  destructive  engines,  the  pound  nets 
and  the  mile  long  seines,  not  having  been  introduced. 

The  red  bass  spawns  in  August  and  September  in  the  inlets  and 
bays,  as  I  am  informe^i  by  Florida  fishermen,  and  deposits  a  large 
amount  of  eggs,  making  it  a  prolific  species.  It  is  a  roving  fish,  and 
must  be  sought  for  among  its  haunts,  which  are  various  ;  deep  chan 
nels,  mud  flats,  oyster  beds,  and  along  the  marshy  shores,  all  of 
^hi^h  it  yifiVt^  at  different  times  of  tide. 


[Since  writing  the  above,  I  have  received  a  copy  of  Jordan  and  Gilbert's  "  Sy 
nopsis  of  the  Fishes  of  North  America,"  from  which  I  take  the  following  descrip- 
tion of  the  above  species  :] 

Sciana  ocellata — Gthr.  Channel  bass — red  bass.  Grayish  silvery,  iridescent ; 
scales  with  dark  spots  forming  faint  irregular  undulating  stripes  ;  upper  part  of 
base  of  caudal  with  an  oval  black  spot  as  large  as  the  eye,  bordered  by  white  or 
orange;  this  spot  is  often  duplicated.*  Body  rather  elongate,  not  much  elevated, 
compressed  behind,  an  almost  even  curve  from  snout  to  base  of  dorsal;  preopercle 
distinctly  serrate ;  eye  large  ;  one  and  a-half  in  snout  ;  five  and  a-half  in 
bead;  gill  rakers  short  and  thick ;  mouth  large  ;  maxillary  nearly  reaching  the 
posterior  margin  of  the  orbit ;  caudal  truncate  ;  second  and  spine  rather  strong, 
two-thirds  as  long  as  first  ray  ;  pectoral  fins  veiy  short,  not  reaching  half-way  to 
anal ;  lower  pharyngeals  narrow,  with  conical  teeth.  Head  three  and  a-third  ; 
depth  three  and  a  half.  D.X.I.  25  ;  A.H.  8.  Lat.  .  50.  Cape  Cod  to  Mexico. 
Common  Southward. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


The  Southern  Weakfish. 


S4LT  Water  Trout — Spotted  Sea  Trout —  Gynoscion  carolinen- 
sis  (Gill). — This  species  is  allied  to  the  weakfish  or  squeteague  of 
the  western  coast,  but  it  is  a  handsomer  and  better  fish.  Color,  sil- 
very sides,  darker  above,  with  rows  of  black  spots  above  the  lateral 
line.  Belly  silvery.  Head  small,  mouth  large  and  well  supplied 
with  sharp  teeth  ;  in  form  and  color  much  resemblng  the  lake  trout 
of  northern  New  York,  but  wanting  of  course  the  adipose  fin.  Pre- 
dacious in  habits,  takes  a  mullet  bait  eagerly,  fights  hard  on  the 
hook,  and  gives  good  sport  with  rod  and  reel,  though  I  think  it  is 
less  enduring  than  the  red  bass. 

This  fish  does  not  well  bear  keeping,  but  eaten  fresh  from  the 
water  is  sweet  and  well  flavored.  It  is  largest  and  most  abundant 
in  summer  and  fall,  when  it  may  be  heard  on  a  still  night  snapping 
along  the  shore  in  pursuit  of  small  fish.  I  have  taken  them  weigh- 
ing from  two  pounds  to  six,  at  Halifax  Inlet  in  winter.  Very  large 
specimens  are  taken  in  Mosquito  Lagoon,  south  of  New  Smyrna, 
weighing,  as  I  am  told,  as  much  as  twenty  pounds.  It  takes  a  bait 
on  the  bottom,  at  mid-water  or  on  the  surface,  and  I  have  killed 
them  in  fresh  water  while  trolling  for  black  bass,  in  Spruce  Creek, 
a  tributary  of  the  Hdlitax.  They  were  of  small  size,  about  two 
pounds,  and  were  taken  with  a  spoon,  and  I  believe  they  would  take 
n  fly  in  swift  water.  This  species  spawns  in  J  uly  and  August,  in 
the  bays  and  inlets  ;  is  not  as  abundant  as  the  red  bass.  The  same 
tackle  may  be  used  for  this  fish  as  for  the  .  red    bass.    The   common 


114  FISHES   OF   THE  EAST   ATLANllG   COAST. 

bait  for  this  fish  is  cut  muilet,  but  from  the  habits  of  the  trout  I 
have  no  doubt  that  live  bait  would  prove  more  attractive,  as  it  is 
found  to  do  with  the  red  bass.  Probablr  also  to  the  sharks,  which 
abound  in  these  waters,  and  make  trouble  by  cutting  off  lines  and 
taking  the  fish  from  the  angler's  hook  as  he  plays  them. 

This  is  also  a  roving  species,  and  is  taken  on  the  same  grounds  as 
the  bass — preferring,  however,  tideways  and  rapid  currents.  We 
seldom  take  more  than  four  or  five  salt  water  trout  in  a  day's  fitih 
ing,  together  with  other  species.  One  great  pleasure  in  angling 
along  this  coast  is  the  variety  of  fish  which  one  encountej-s,  and  you 
can  never  predict  whether  your  next  capture  will  weigh  one  pound 
or  twenty. 

b^SCRIPTION   FROM  JORDAN  AND  GILBERT'S    SYNOPSIS. 

Cynoseion  m%catti  w— (Mitchell,  Gill). — Spotted  sea  trout.  Bright  silvery, 
darker  above  ;  back  posteriorly  with  numerous  round  black  spots  as  large  as  the 
pupil ;  both  dorsal  and  caudal  fins  marked  with  similar  somewhat  smaller  spots 
much  as  in  a  trout  ;  anal  dusky.  Maxillary  reaching  to  posterior  edge  of  eye  ;  can) 
ines  moderate.  Longest  dorsal  spine  not  quite  half  the  length  of  the  head  ;  cauda 
lunate.  Head,  31^  ;  depth  5.  Eye  large,  about  6  in  head.  D.X — I,  25  ;  A.  I. 
10  ;  Lat.  I  ;  about  90.    Virginia  to  Mexico  ;   very  abundant  southward. 


)  CHAPTEE  IV. 


The  Red  Groupeb. 


Red  Grouper. — Epinephelus  morio — (Cuv.  Gill). — I  give  to  this 
well  known  and  valuable  food  fish  of  the  Florida  coast  the  name  af- 
fixed to  it  by  scientists,  as  I  suppose,  though  I  have  not  identified 
the  species.  Jordan  and  Gilbert  in  their  Synopsis  write  of  the 
groupers,  that  the  synonomyof  the  species  is  much  confused,  and  the 
name  to  be  adopted  uncertain.  Their  description  of  E.  morio  seem 
more  like  the  common  grouper  than  that  of  any  other  which  they 
describe.  Holbrook  in  his  Fishes  of  South  Carolina  describes  it 
under  the  name  of  8erranus  erythrog aster. 

The  name  "  grouper"  is  found  in  Roman's  List  of  the  Fishes  of  the 
East  Florida  Coast.  How  far  north  it  occurs  I  do  not  know,  but  it 
is  abundant  and  large  along  the  island  of  Cuba,  as  I  am  informed. 
It  is  a  thick-set,  robust  fish,  of  the  perch  family,  with  hard  spines  in 
the  dorsal  fin  ;  large  head  and  mouth,  with  many  sharp  teeth.  Color, 
light  olive,  mottled  with  darker  lines,  like  tortoise  shell.  Fins  tipped 
with  blue  ;  inside  of  mouth  red. 

The  grouper  is  taken  on  the  bottom  in  deep  channels  and  holes, 
near  the  roots  of  the  mangrove  trees,  under  which  it  makes  its  strong- 
hold. It  is  never  found  far  from  this  fortress,  to  which  it  retreats 
when  alarmed,  or  when  hooked.  The  usual  bait  is  mullet,  either  cut 
or  whole  ;  the  latter  being  more  attractive,  and  taking  the  larger 
specimens.  In  size  it  runs  from  half  a  pound  to  fifteen  pounds,  and 
is  seldom   or  ever  taken  with  the  <!ast  net.  It  is  voracious,  but  shy. 


118  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

and  easily  alarmed,  and  after  one  has  escaped  from  the  hook,  or  after 
the  capture  of  two  or  three,  the  others  seem  to  take  fright  and  will 
seldom  take  a  bait  in  that  place  for  some  days.  When  hooked — 
and  it  is  always  near  its  hole  that  a  grouper  takes  a  bait — it  makes 
straight  for  the  roots,  and  can  only  by  main  force  be  kept  from  get- 
ting under  them,  so  that  only  those  of  moderate  size  can  be  taken 
with  rod  and  reel — say  up  to  five  or  six  pounds  weight.  The  larger 
ones  can  only  be  landed  with  a  heavy  hand  line.  It  is  a  trial  of 
strength  between  the  man  and  his  tackle  and  the  fish;  the  latter,  if 
of  large  size,  often  proving  the  stronger,  and  breaking  line  or  hook, 
or  reaching  its  fortress,  from  whence  it  cannot  be  dislodged,  the  re- 
sult being  loss  of  tackle  and  of  patience.  The  rod  fisher  loses  half 
the  number  of  groupers  that  he  hooks.  I  think  I  I'.ave  never  been 
able  to  kill  on  a  rod  a  grouper  over  five  pounds  in  weight.  I  have 
hooked  many  large  ones,  but  they  always  got  the  better  of  me. 
Other  rod  fishers  may  perhaps  have  been  more  fortunate  or  skillful. 
A  friend  who  was  fishing  near  me  in  the  Halifax  River  killed  a  pair 
of  these  fish  at  once,  weighing  four  and  five  pounds,  but  I  think  the 
two  ran  different  ways  to  their  respective  holes,  and  so  pulled  against 
each  other.  If  they  had  both  made  for  the  same  hole  I  think  they 
could  not  have  been  stopped.  As  is  well  known  to  anglers,  the  first 
rush  of  a  strong  and  heavy  fish  cannot  safely  be  resisted,  and  the 
grouper  makes  only  one.  If  he  would  only  fight  in  open  water  likft 
the  red  bass,  he  could  be  tired  out  ;  but  he  gives  the  angler  no 
plav. 

The  best  day's  sport  I  ever  had  with  the  groupers  was  in  the  Hali- 
fax River,  I  think  iu  April,  1875,  with  B.  C.  Pacetti,  a  very  skillful 
fisherman  of  that  coast.  He  took  me  in  his  skiff  to  a  deep  hole  in 
a  creek  among  the  Mangrove  Islands,  which  he  said  had  not  been 
fished  for  a  long  time,  and  for  an  hour  the  sport  was  fast  and  furious. 
The  groupers  were  hungry  and  took  our  mullets  eagerly.  I  killed 
three  of  3,  4,  and  5  pounds,  and  lost  three  still  heavier  by  the  break- 
ing  of  my  line.  My  companion,  who  used  a  cod  line,  killed  four  of 
5,  6,  6|  and  7  pounds,  and  had  his  line  broken  once  and  his  hook 
once,  by  monsters  which  he  could  not  handle.  Seven  groupers  from 
one   hole   was   uncommon   luck,  but   the   survivors  were   so   much 


?/? 


B^IKflES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  121 

alarmed  that  I  think  they  deserted  the  spot ;  at  any  rate,  I  have  often 
Ined  the  place  since  without  getting  a  bite. 

The  flcpb  of  this  species  is  fine,  rich  and  well  flavored,  and  is  highly 
prized,  perhaps  partly  on  account  of  the  scarcity  of  the  fish  and 
difficulty  of  taking  it.  To  my  taste  it  much  resembles  the  red  bags 
when  in  good  condition. 

JORDAN  AND  GILBERT'S  DESCRIPTION. 
Epinephelus  morio — (Cuv. — Gill).  Red  grouper,  brownish,  marked  with  ash  ; 
salmon  color  below  soft  parts  of  the  vertical  fins  margined  with  blue  ;  body  oval, 
compressed  above  ;  profile  oblique  gently  curved;  mouth  terminal,  large,  some- 
what oblique  ;  maxillary  reaching  beyond  eye  ;  eye  about  as  long  as  snout.  Head 
2>^  ;  depths.  D.  XI.  17  ;  A.  HI.  9  ;  Lat,  I.  106;  caeca  28.  Atlantic  coast, 
chiefly  southward. 


lOi 


CHAPTEU  V. 


The  Rook  Grouper, — The  Pom  pa  no. 


TiiK  Rock  Grouper — So  called  by  the  Florida  fishermen.  I  ha'- 
Tiever  seen  any  account  of  this  speces,  scientific  or  otherwise,  h 
differs  from  the  common  grouper  in  many  particulars.  It  is  a  thick- 
set, heavily  built  fish,  with  a  large  head.  Inhabits  rocky  bottoms 
ind  deep  holes;  rather  sluggish,  though  a  strong  and  hea.vy  j>uller. 
Color,  dark  brown  with  lighter  marks  and  lines;  scales  small.  Aver- 
age weight  five  or  six  pounds,  and  has  been  taken  in  the  Halifax  River 
jreighing  twenty-eight  pounds.  It  is  easier  handled  on  a  rod  than 
*iie  common  grouper,  not  running  to  a  hole  like  that  fish,  but  fight- 
ing in  open  water. 

It  is  a  rich  and  well  flavored  fish,  superior,  in  my  opinion,  to  the 
last  named  spocies.  Some  years  this  species  is  quite  common,  so 
that  some  are  taken  every  day.  In  other  years  they  may  be  scarce, 
and  this  we  find  is  the  case  wnth  many  species  on  the  Florida  coast. 
On  the  northern  coast  we  know  that  the  same  thing  occurs,  and  there 
it  is  often  attributed  to  the  effects  of  pound  nets  and  seines  and  over- 
fishing. 

On  the  Florida  coast  there  have  been  few^  of  these  destructive 
engines,  and  the  cast  net  is  the  only  net  used,  and  that  merely  for 
the  needs  of  the  scanty  population  of  those  shores.  Except  in  the 
neighborhood  of  St.  Augustine  and  Jacksonville,  the  amount  of  fish 
taken  by  man  is  very  small.  Marine  birds  and  fishes  of  prey  are  the 
principal  destroyers  of  food  fishes.     In  fact,  the  waters   are  almost 


^ 


H 


\ 


riSHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  125 

in  a  state  of  nature  ;  and  yet  this  abundance  and  scarcity  of  many 
species  occurs  here  from  year  to  year.  The  rock  grouper  is  taken 
with  mullet  bait,  on  the  ground. 

Since  writing  the  above,  I  find  on  consulting  Professor  Jordan's 
Synopsis,  a  species  there  described  under  the  name  of  Bhypticus  ma- 
culatus^  which  much  resembles  the  rock  grouper. 

DESCRIPTION. 

Olive  brown  above,  with  scattered  whitish  spots  ;  below,  pale  slate  color  Back 
regularly  arched  from  snout  to  caudal  fin.  Mouth  large,  maxillary  extending  be- 
yond orbit  ;  lower  jaw  longer  than  upper,  and  projecting  much  beyond  it  in  closed 
mouth.  Pre-opercle  with  two  stout  spines  ;  opercle  with  three.  Pectorals  rather 
large.  Vertical  fins  high.  Dorsal  spines  slightly  connected  with  the  soft  rays. 
Head  3  1-3  ;  depth  3.  D,  II,  25  ;  A.  15.  North  Carolina  to  the  West  Indies. 
Common  name,  soapfish. 

PoMPANO —  PoMPEYNOSE.  —  Trachynotus  caroli7ius. —  (Linn.  — 
Gill.) — On  the  South  Carolina  coast  this  species  is  called  "Crevalle;" 
in  New  Orleans  and  Mobile,  pompano  or  porapeynose;  the  same 
name  is  given  it  in  East  Florida,  and  it  is  often  confounded  with  the 
previously  described  species,  which  it  much  resembles  in  appearance, 
t.hough  not  in  habits  or  in  quality.  , The  general  form  is  that  of  the 
oavalli^  but  deeper  in  proportion  to  Its  length,  with  a  more  obtuse 
•snout,  a  smaller  mouth  with  few  or  no  teeth,  color,  a  brilliant  frostpd 
Sliver  below,  above  dark  blue,  changing  to  green  and  jellow.  It  is 
.a  bottom  fish,  living  entirely  on  muUusks  and  Crustacea,  as  I  believe 
— which  probably  give  it  the  delicacy  and  flavor  which  distinguisn 
it  above  al)  other  species  in  the  salt  water.  The  fish  which  more 
resembles  the  pompano  in  these  particulars,  the  whitefish  of  the  Great 
Lakes,  Gorregonus  sapidlssimus  (Ag.),  has  also  been  found  to  sub- 
sist upon  Crustacea  exclusively. 

The  sheepshead,  which  lives  upon  similar  food,  has  also  a  similar 
richness  and  delicacy  of  flesh,  though  in  a  less  degree  than  the  pom- 
pano, which  wherever  it  is  known,  takes  precedence  over  all  other 
food  fishes  of  our  waters.  Like  all  other  delicacies  it  finds  its  way 
to  New  York,  but  probably  loses  much  of  its  excellence  on  the  way 
— all  fish  should  be  eaten  on  the  shores  of  their  native  waters.  The 
Enj^lish  epicure  crosses  the  Atlantic  to  eat  the  canvas-backed  ducks 


12Q  risbES  or  the  east  Atlantic  coast. 

in  Baltimore,  and  the  pompano  is  to  the  fish  gourmand  worth  a. 
journey  to  the  Gulf   coast. 

The  pompano  is  taken  on  the  ocean  beach  of  East  Florida  in  the 
summer  months  with  the  cast  net,  in  size  from  one  pound  to  six, 
average,  two  pounds.  It  spawns  in  March,  as  I  learn  from  the  Flo- 
rida fishermen. 

While  fishing  for  sheepshead  in  the  Halifax  River  in  1870,  I  cap- 
tured a  pompano  with  rod  and  clar^  bait.  Its  action  on  the  line  was 
peculiar,  and  different  from  that  of  the  cavalli;  it  ran  in  circlee,  and 
fought  vigorously  for  a  long  time,  and  Bartolo  Facet ti,  who  was 
with  me,  one  of  the  oldest  and  most  experienced  fishermen  on  the 
coast,  said  that  was  only  the  second  instance  he  had  ever  known 
of  taking  the  pompano  with  the  hook.  My  specimen  weighed  two- 
and  a-half  pounds,  and  being  cooked  and  eaten  within  three  hours, 
of  his  capture,  he  was  all  my  fancy  painted  him. 

In  Jordan  and  Gilbert's  Synopsis,  four  species  of  Trachynotus 
are  described  as  occurring  on  our  coasts,  and  the  description  of 
the  above  species  is  as  follows  : 

DESCRIPTION. 

T.  carolinus — L.  (Gill.) — Common  pompano.  Uniform  bluish  above,  sides  sil- 
very, golden  in  the  adult,  without  bands  ;  fins  plain  silvery  or  dusky.  Body  ob- 
long ovate,  elevated,  profile  forming  a  gentle  curve  from  the  middle  of  the  back  to- 
the  snout,  where  it  descends  abruptly.  Dorsal  and  anal  falcate,  their  lobes 
reaching  when  depressed  nearly  to  the  middle  of  the  fin  ;  pectoral  reaching  to 
opposite  the  vent.  Gill  rakers  short,  slender  in  the  young,  becoming  thick  in  the 
adult.  Head4;  depth  2  1-3.  D.  VI-i,  25;  A.  Il-i,  23,  L.  18  inches. 
West  Indies,  north  to  Cape  Cod.  The  most  valued  food  fish  of  our  Southernti 
waters. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


The  Cavalli,  or  Crevalle. — The  Mangrove  Snappeu. — The  Crab 
Eater,  or  Sergeant  Fish. 


Cayalli,  or  Crevalle. — This  is  a  Carangus^  but  which  of 
the  species  described  by  naturalists  as  visiting  our  coasts,  I 
am  unable  to  say.  It  is,  however,  a  valuable  fish  for  sport, 
but  of  only  moderate  quality  on  the  table;  the  flesh  being  some-«^hat 
oily,  with  black  streaks,  like  that  of  the  mackerel. 

The  cavalli  usually  appears  at  Mosquito  Inlet,  on  the  east  coast  of 
Florida,  in  April  in  large  schools,  and  is  discovered  by  the  commo- 
tion it  causes  among  the  small  fry,  especially  mullet,  which  it  hunts 
and  devours  incessantly,  often  driving  them  on  shore.  In  the  Indias 
River  and  further  south  it  occurs  all  M'inter. 

In  form  the  cavalli  is  deep  and  compressed,  with  a  long  double 
dorsal  fin  extending  to  the  tail,  which  is  deeply  forked.  The  colors 
change  rapidly  after  the  fish  is  taken,  like  those  of  the  dolphin, 
green  and  yellow  predominating.  Eyes  large,  mouth  ditto,  with 
sharj)  conical  teeth.  Grows  to  the  weight  of  ten  or  twelve  pounds, 
averaging  perhaps  three.  Very  strong  and  active,  and  fights  to  the 
last  on  the  hook,  dying  as  soon  as  it  leaves  the  water.  It  is  very 
voracious,  taking  all  sorts  of  bait,  on  the  bottom,  at  mid-water,  or 
on  the  surfa(^e — cut  mullet  is  commonly  used.  I  have  taken  it  while 
trolling  with  a  spoon,  and  I  am  told  that  it  will  rise  to  a  fly.  A  ca- 
valli of  four  or  five  pounds  must  be  very  carefully  handled  on  a  rod, 
as  its   movements  are    rapid   and  unexpected  ;  leaping  out  of  the 


lt>8  FISHES    OF   THE    EAST    ATIANTIO    COAST. 

w^ter,  running  under  and  around  the  boat,  and  conducting  itself  in 
th<'  ixamest  fashion.     Spawns  in  May,  in  the  ocean. 

One  spring  day,  while  at  Halifax  Inlet,  being  attracted  by  the 
feighv  of  great  schools  of  cavalii  chasing  the  mullet  along  the  shores, 
I  went  out  with  my  rod,  and  found  at  the  mouth  of  a  creek  the  shore 
shining  with  the  silvery  bodies  of  small  mullet  and  menhaden,  driven 
up  high  and  dry  by  their  ravenous  pursuers,  while  a  number  of 
brown  pelicans  were  filling  their  pouches  with  them,  and  various 
gulls  and  other  sea  birds  were  also  feeding  on  them.  The  river 
fairly  boiled  with  the  rushing  hosts,  and  attaching  a  bright  spoon  to 
my  line  I  cast  it  into  the  current.  Directly  it  w^as  seized  by  a  ca- 
valii, which  in  due  time  I  secured,  and  afterward  several  others. 
While  the  schools  of  mullet  and  cavalii  remained  near,  tiie  sport  was 
good,  but  soon  the  crowd  of  pursued  and  pursuers  passed  by  up  the 
river  with  the  tide. 

Jordan  and  Gilbert  describe  eight  species  of  Caranx  on  the  coast 
of  North  America,  of  which  C  hippus^  (Gunther)  the  horse  crevalli, 
is  most  abundant,  and  probably  our  fish. 

DESCRIPTION. 

Olivaceous  above  ;  sides  and  below  silvery  or  golden  ;  a  distinct  black  blotch  on 
opercle,  and  one  on  lower  rays  of  pectorals,  the  latter  sometimes  wanting  ;  axil  of 
pectoral  dusky  ;  anterior  edge  of  dorsals  black  ;  upper  edge  of  caudal  peduncle 
dusky.  Body  oblong,  lue  anterior  profile  very  strongly  arched.  Head  large  and 
deep.  Mouth  large,  low  and  nearly  horizontal  below  axis  of  body  ;  lower  jaw 
included  ;  maxillary  extending  to  nearly  opposite  posterior  border  of  eye.  Teeth 
teeth  ;  teeth  in  lower  jaw  in  one  row,  i  distinct  canine  on  ea  side  of  symphysis 
in  upper  jaw  in  a  broad  villiform  band  ;  an  outer  series  of  large  wide-set  conical 
villiform  teeth  on  vomer,  palatines  and  tongue.  Lateral  line  with  a  wide  arch  ;  its 
length  three-fourths  that  of  straight  part  ;  plates  not  covering  all  of  straight  part. 
Dorsal  spines  short,  rather  stout  ;  procumbent  spine  obsolete.  Gill-rakers  stout, 
not  very  long,  fifteen  below  angle.  Occipital  keel  sharp.  Eye  not  very  large, 
longer  than  snout,  4  in  head.  Pectoral  falcate,  longer  than  head.  Breast  naked; 
with  a  small  patch  of  scales  in  front  of  ventral  only.  Caudal  lobes  equal.  Heai 
lYz  ;  depth  2^'^  ;  Lat.  i  (scutes)  about  30.  D.  VIII-i,  20  ;  A.  II-I,  I7-  ^*P® 
Cod  to  West  Indies  ;  common  southward. 


Mangkove  Snappeu — Lutjanus  aurorubens. — Professor  Jordan's 
description  is  like  our  South  Florida  fish,  except  as  to  canine  t?et,h. 


FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST.  131 

1  find  the  name  "  mangrove  snapper"  in  Capt.  Roman's  list,  and  it 
is  a  significant  one,  as  this  species  lives  in  holes  among  the  roots  of  that 
tree.  Jordan  places  it  in  the  same  genus  with  L.  blackfordii,  the 
red  snapper,  which  is  an  ocean  fish  of  different  habits. 

.  Like  the  grouper,  the  mangrove  snapper  is  stationary,  seldom  ven- 
turing far  from  its  retreat,  in  which  it  takes  refuge  when  alarmed. 
It  is  one  of  the  most  shy  and  cunning  fishes  of  this  coast,  and  long 
casts  from  the  boat  are  necessary  to  beguile  it.  No  doubt  fine  tackle 
would  be  more  successful  than  the  coarse  hand  lines  commonly  used, 
but  the  snapper  has  very  sharp  teeth,  and  silk  worm  gut  would  stand 
no  chance.  It  makes  for  its  hole  with-  a  rush  as  soon  as  it  feels  Xhe 
hook,  after  the  manner  of  the  grouper,  and  is  a  more  active  fighter 
than  that  fish,  though,  perhaps,  not  stronger.  Cut  mullet  is  generally 
used  for  bait.  Cast  as  far  from  the  boat  as  possible,  into  the  a  deep 
channel  near  the  snags;  let  the  bait  rest  gently  on  the  bottom  for 
five  or  ten  minutes,  and  as  soon  as  the  bite  is  felt  get  the  snapper 
away  from  the  bank — otherwise  fish  and  hook  are  gone. 

In  form  the  mangrove  snapper  resembles  the  small-mouthed  black 
bass.  Color,  a  reddish  brown,  with  golden  reflections.  Hard  spines 
in  dorsal  fin.  Head,  small,  with  wide  mouth  furnished  with  sharp 
teeth.  Canines  very  large,  with  which  it  snaps  savagely  when  cap- 
tured. Eye  very  large  and  bright,  with  golden  colored  iris.  Scales 
largo.  The  large  eyes  seem  to  indicate  nocturnal  habits,  confirmed  by 
the  fact  that  the  snapper  feeds  more  freely  at  night,  and  on  dark 
days.  The  fishermen  say  that  when  placed  in  a  car  alive  with 
other  fish,  the  snapper  will  mangle  and  devour  them.  It  is  not  soli- 
tary, but  is  often  found  in  considerable  numbers  together  in  deep 
holes,  and  is  thus  captured  with  the  cast  net. 

"Size  in  Halifax  River,  from  halt  a  pound  to  five  pounds.  In  the 
Indian  River  I  have  taken  them  of  seven  to  eight  pounds  in  weight, 
and  it  makes  a  vigorous  resistance  when  hooked,  showing  good  sport 
if  kept  away  from  its  hole.  Is  of  excellent  quality  on  the  table  and 
keeps  well. 

JORD    N   AND   gilbert's   DESCRIPTION.  W 

L.  amorubens—{Cnv.—Y?i\).—M?,x\gxo\e  Snapper.  Vermillion-red  above,  rosy 
below  :  sides  with  oblong  irregular  yellow  spots  ;    dorsal  and  pectoral  fins   red  ; 


132  FISHKS    OF    tup:    KASr    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

ventral  and  anal  lighter.  Body,  oblong — elliptical,  moderately  compressed,  not 
•levated.  Mouth,  moderate,  without  distinct  canines  ;  tongue  with  a  large  oval 
patch  of  teeth,  besides  which  are  five  or  six  smaller  patches  ;  nostrils  round,  near 
together.  Preopercle  finely  serrate,  its  notch  obsolete.  "^Gill-rakers  very  long  and 
slender.  Dorsal  spines  rather  slender;  2d.  anal  spine  a  little  longer  than  3d.; 
caudal  fin  lunate,  its  lobes  not  attenuate.  Head  3>^  ;  depth  3.  D.  XH  ,  11  ;  A. 
Ill,    8  ;  Lat  I.  54.     L.  1.54.     West  Indies,  North    to  S.  Carolina  and  Florida." 


Crab-Eater,  or  Sergeaxt  Fish. — Elacate  Canada. — (Linn. — 
Gill.) — The  trivial  name  "  sergeant  fish,"  comes  from  the  dark  stripe 
on  the  side,  resembling  that  on  the  trowsers  of  a  non-commissioned 
officer.  In  shape  the  crab-eater  resembles  the  pike  of  fresh  water, 
Esox — being  long  and  cylindrical,  with  a  similar  formation  of  head 
and  jaws.  Its  habits  also  are  similar  to  those  of  the  pike,  lying  under 
weeds  and  banks,  waiting  to  seize  upon  smaller  fishes.  I  have  not 
met  with  it  in  the  Halifax  River,  but  have  found  it  abundant  at  the 
Indian  River  Inlet,  where  it  averages  three  feet  in  length,  weighing 
live  or  six  pounds.  Takes  i^iullet  bait  eagerly.  In  game  qualities 
and  value  of  flesh  it  is  perhaps  equal  to  the  pike — not  very  high 
praise. 

JORDAN  AND  GILBERT'S  DEECRIPTION. 
E.  canadensis— {V  inn. — Gill  ) — Crab-eater,  Cobia.  Olive  brown  ;  sides  with  adis- 
tinct  broad  band  of  darker,  and  a  less  distinct  band  above  and  below  it  ;  below, 
silvery.  Head  much  depressed  ;  mouth  moderate,  the  short  maxillary  reaching 
front  of  orbit.  Pectorals  broad  and  falcate  ;  caudal  deeply  emarginate,  the  upper 
lobe  the  longer.  Lateral  line  wavy  and  irregular,  descending  posteriorly.  Head 
4^  in  length  ;  depth  5  2-3,  D.  VIII-i,  26  ;  A.  II,  25.  L,  5  feet.  In  all  warm 
«eas,  occasional  on  our  Atlantic  coast  in  summer. 


CHAPTEK  VI J. 


The  L>j>.ii  h,  oh  r>o-.'i:  Fihh. — The  Jewfish. — The  Tarpum, 
OR  Tarpon. 


Ladyfish — Skip  Jack — Boxe  Fish — Albula  conorhynchx 
(Block — Schneider.) — My  description  is'as  follows  of  freshly  caught 
specimens  :  Length,  one  to  three  feet.  Body,  slender  andcylindical. 
Head,  1-5  the  whole  lens^th  ;  eyes  very  large,  iris  yellow  ;  mouth 
large  ;  teeth  small;  labials  long  and  large,  with  fine  teeth  on  edges. 
Scales  small.  Fins  all  soft  rayed  ;  dorsal  high  in  middle  of  the 
back,  18  ;  pectoral  16  ;  anal  10  ;  tail  deeply  forked.  Color  of  back, 
dark  blue  ;    sides  and  belly  silvery  ;  head  greenish. 

iHe  ladyfish,  though  not  valuable  for  food,  it  being  a  mass  of 
bones  and  fat,  like  a  menhaden,  is  so  active  and  vigorous  on  the  line 
that  it  affords  more  sport  than  any  other  species  on  the  coast.  *  No 
sooner  is  it  hooked  than  it  begins  to  throw  itself  from  the  water  in 
successive  and  lofty  leaps,  then  darting  round  and  round  the  boat,, 
under  it  and  over  it  till  exhausted,  or  till  it  escapes  by  casting  out 
the  hook,  or  cutting  the  line  with  its  sharp  labials.  The  mouth 
being  tender,  the  hook  does  not  take  a  firm  hold,  and  one-half  the 
number  hooked  usually  escape.  I  know  of  no  species  which  equals 
it  in  activity  ;  even  the  grilse,  or  young  salmon,  makes  fewer  leaps, 
and  is  less  rapid  in  its  play.  Like  the  cavalli,  it  feeds  both  at  the 
bottom  and  on  the  surface,  and  could  probably  be  taken  with  the 
fly  or  spoon.  It  appears  in  the  Halifax  River  in  April  in  schoolfl  in 
chase  of  the  mullet  and  other  small  fry. 


134  jFlSJtES   OF   THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

Jewfish— -  •:/i*«'(?/>iOcro/>5  guasa — Gill.  — This  is  a  giant  perch, 
resembling  in  outline  a  much  magnified  tautog  or  blackfish.  It 
grows  to  the  weight  of  five  or  six  hundred  pounds,  and  of  course 
:it  is  only  the  smaller  specimens  that  can  be  taken  with  rod  and 
iroel.  I  was  once  present  at  the  capture  of  a  young  jewfish,  weigh- 
jing  about  twenty  pounds,  and  it  gave  a  fight  of  half  an  hour's  du- 
jration.  When  brought  to  table  it  proved  to  be  a  rich  and  well 
tiavored  fi^h. 

It  is  afish  of  great  strength,  and  the  large  ones  will  break  hooks 
and  lines  which  are  large  enough  to  capture  good  sized  sharks;  this 
I  have  myself  seen  in  the  case  of  a  shark  hook  one  third  of  an  inch 
in  diameter.  I  have  myself  hooked  a  large  jewfish,  how  large  1 
never  knew — ail  1  saw  was  the  sweep  of  a  huge  tail  a  foot  broad, 
and  away  went  my  tackle. 

The  jewfish  has  the  habit  of  floating  along  on  the  surface  with 
he  tide,  apparently  asleep,  and  it  is  then  sometimes  shot.  One  wa 
killed  in  this  way  in  Spruce  Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Halifax  River, 
a  few  years  ago,  by  Mr.  B.  C.  Pacetti,  a  fisherman  of  those  regions 
who  supposed  it  to  weigh  600  pounds,  and  he  was  familiar  with  this 
iish,  having  captured  many  of  them.  He  once  fastened  to  a  large 
jewfish  which  he  found  floating  near  St.  Augustine,  and  it  towed 
his  boat  off  seawards  till  he  was  joined  by  several  other  fishing 
boats,  and  among  them  they  managed  to  capture  it;  when  they  ^ot 
it  to  town  there  were  no  scales  in  St.  Augustine  that  could  weigh 
it  whole,  so  they  cut  it  up,  and  it  weighed  over  500  pounds. 

Even  a  specimen  of  that  size  is  said  to  be  good  eating,  so  that 
this  species  must  furnish  perhaps  the  largest  of  edible  fishes.  A 
plaster  cast  of  a  jewfish  weighing  probably  forty  or  fifty  pounds, 
was  shown  in  the  fisheries  department  of  the  Centennial  Exhibition 
in  Philadelphia- 
How  far  north  this  species  occurs  I  am  unable  to  say,  but  it  ap- 
pears to  be  a  stationary  species,  found  on  both  coasts  of  Florida, 
and  abounding  in  tropical  seas.  Found  in  deep  holes  and  channels 
in  the  salt  water  sounds  and  inlets.     Takes  mullet  bait. 

Jordan  and  Gilbert's  synopsis  describes  only  this   one   species   of 
Promocrops,  as  follows:      Yellowish    olivaceous,    wilh    numerous 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  137 

"brown  spots.  Body  more  compressed  above  than  below.  Mouth 
large,  maxillary  reaching  beyond  the  orbit;  preopercle  feebly  ser-i 
rated;  opercle  with  three  flat  points;  fins  all  very  low,  candal  round-' 
ed.  Head  3  1-6;  depth  4.  D.  XL,  16;  A.  III.,  8.  West  Indies, 
north  to   Florida;  reaches  a  weight  of  400  or  500  pounds. 


TAiirT'Af — ^AKPOM. — Meffalops  t/trissoides. — (Gunther.) — Captain 
Romans  includes  this  species  in  His  list  of  the  fishes  of  East  Florida, 
and  spells  the  name  with  the  o.  Imagine  a  herring-shaped  fish,  five 
or  six  feet  long,  with  brilliant  silvery  scales,  the  size  of  a  half  dollar, 
in  schools  of  a  dozen  or  twenty,  leaping  from  the  blue  surface  of  a 
summer  sea.  This  is  all  that  the  angler  usually  sees  of  the  tarpum. 
Sometimes  one  of  these  glittering*  rushing  monsters  takes  the  hook. 
What  follows  ?  The  line  runs  out  with  great  speed  till  it  has  all 
left  the  reel,  where  it  parts  at  its  weakest  point,  and  the  fish  goes  off 
leaping,  seaward.  When  hooked  on  a  hand  line  similar  results  fol- 
low. No  man  is  strong  enough  to  hold  a  large  tarpum,  unless  he  is 
provided  with  a  drag,  or  buoy,  in  the  shape  of  an  empty  keg  attached 
to  the  line,  which  may  retard  or  even  stop  the  fish,  after  awhile. 
Aided  by  a  buoy  the  tarpum  is  sometimes  taken  with  a  harpoon,  or 
grains. 

I  have  heard  of  one  instance  of  this  fish  being  killed  on  a  hand 
line.  As  usual,  the  line  was  snatched  from  the  hands  of  the  fisher- 
man in  the  first  rush,  and  the  tarpum  went  leaping  down  the  river, 
but  the  heavy  leaden  sinker  struck  it  on  the  head  and  stunned  it,  so 
that  it  was  picked  up  by  means  of  a  boat.  This  happened  in  the 
Halifax  River.  One  was  killed  a  few  years  ago  in  the  Indian  River, 
as  I  am  credibly  informed,  with  rod  and  reel  by  an  angler  from 
Philadelphia,  after  a  contest  of  some  hours.  The  fish  was  over  six 
feet  long  and  weicrhed  more  than  100  pounds — certainly  one  of  the 
greatest  angling  feats  on  record.  It  is  a  fish  as  much  more  power- 
ful and  difficult  to  handle  on  a  rod  than  the  salmon,  as  the  galmon  is 
more  powerful  than  the  black  bass.  This  may  perhaps  be  thought  a 
rash  assertion,  but  it  is  gathered  from  my  own  experience.  Twice 
I  have  hooked  a  tarpum,  and  twice  I  lost  my  tac  kle,  without  c^^ck- 

£10] 


138  FiaHEw  Of   tul:  east  atla^^tiu  coast. 

ing  the  fish  in  the  slighteHt  degree — and  1  have  killed  a  twenty-four 
pound  salmon,  fresh  run  from  the  sea. 

t  Those  anglers  who  have  exhausted  the  pleasures  of  salmon  fishing 
and  sigh  for  new  worlds  to  conquer,  may  betake  themselves  with 
their  heaviest  rods  and  two  hundred  yards  of  line  to  the  Florida 
coast  in  spring  ;  there,  at  the  mouth  of  the  St.  John,  or  at  Halifax  or 
Indian  River  Inlet  they  will  find  foemen  worthy  of  their  steel. 
Should  they  succeed  in  killing  a  tarpnm,  let  it  be  stuffed  and  hung 
up  as  the  choicest  trophy  in  their  museum. 

The  brilliant  scales  of  the  tarpum  are  used  in  Florida  for  the  man- 
lufacture  of  ornamental  jewelry.  The  fish  itself  is  said  to  be  good 
eating. 

^  Of  the  genus  Megalops  Messrs.  Jordan  and  Gilbert  write  :  "  The 
species  are  of  very  large  size,  the  largest  of  the  Clupeoid  fishes,  found 
in  all  warm  seas.  The  name  comes  from  a  Greek  word,  meaning 
"  large-eyed.*' 

I  DESCRIPTION, 

Af,  thtissoides — (Block  and  Schneider — Cunther.) — Tarpum.  -Uniform  brilliant  sil- 
very; back  darker.  Body  elongate,  compressed,  little  elevated.  Head  4  in  length, 
depth  34-5.  D.  12,  A.  20;  Lat  i,  42  ;  B.  23.  Dorsal  filament  longer  than 
head.     Atlantic  ocean,  entering  fresh  waterj  common  on  our  Southern  coasts, 


OHAPTEK  VIII. 


The  Deum. — The  Hogfish,  or  Pigfish.  —The  Sailor's  Choice. 


Drum.  —  Pogonias  chromis  —  (Linn).  —  Fishermen  believe  that 
there  are  two  specie.s  of  drum  on  the  Florida  coast,  one  large  and 
light  colored,  weighing  up  to  seventy-live  or  eighty  pounds,  the 
other  dark  colored  and  smaller,  weighing  from  three  pounds  to  ten, 
the  larger  being  much  the  better  fish.  Professors  Jordan^  and 
Gilbert  only  describe  one  species,  so  that  the  smaller  is  proba- 
bly the  young  fish.  We  find  these  latter  associating  with  the 
sheepshead,  which  they  much  resemble  in  appearance  and  habits, 
feed  on  the  same  moUusks,  and  are  taken  with  the  same  bait.  The 
large  ones,  say  from  twenty  to  forty  pounds  weight,  appear  in  April 
or  May  in  large  schools  in  the  bays  and  rivers,  announcing  their 
presence  by  the  peculiar  grunting  or  drumming  noise  which  they 
make  under  the  water,  which  can  be  heard  a  long  distance,  though 
it  is  difficult  to  locate  the  sound.  These  big  drum  are  taken  withi 
strong  hand  lines,  usually  at  night,  with  a  whole  crab  upon  the 
book.  Of  course  a  fish  of  forty  pounds  can  make  a  strong  resistance. ' 
It  is  a  dead  pull  between  fisherman  and  fish.  In  St.  Augustine  the 
large  drum  is  considered  a  good  fish,  and  sells  well.  Where  fish 
are  more  abundant  and  various,  as  at  Halifax  or  Indian  River  Inlets, 
no  one  eats  drum.  To  my  taste,  the  flesh  is  rather  coarse,  but  of 
good  flavor.  The  smaller  ones,  which  are  often  taken  while  rod 
fishing,  make  a  strong  fight,  similar  to  a  sheepshead,  surging  to  the 


142  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST. 

"bottom,  and  throwing  their  weight  on  the  rod  and  line,  one  of  which 
18  liable,  in  the  hands  of  an  inexperienced  angler,  to  be  broken. 

JORDAN  AND  GILBERT'S  DESCRIPTION, 
P  <r/in7wij— (Linn)— Drum. — Grayish  silvery,  with  four  or  five  dark  vertical 
bars,  which  disappear  with  age  ;  fins  dusky  ;  body  oblong,  much  compressed  ;  pro- 
file very  steep,  its  curve  uneaven  ;  ventral  outline  little  curved.  Mouth  moderate, 
maxillary  scarcely  reaching  middle  of  orbit.  Scales  large,  those  on  breast  much 
smaller.  Fins  large,  pectorals  reaching  beyond  tips  of  ventrals,  nearly  to  vent  ; 
second  anal  and  spinal  more  than  half  length  of  head.  Head  above  scaly,  except  a 
triangular  space  on  snout.  Head  3  1-4  in  length  ;  depth  2^.  D.  X,  20  ;  A.  II,  6; 
Lat.  I.  50.     Cape  Cod  to  West  Indies  ;  abundant  southward 


HoG-FisH — PiG-PisH — perhaps  Lachnolmmus  falcatus  of  Jordan 
and  Gilbert's  Synopsis*  At  any  rate  a  fish  of  fine  quality,  rich  and 
delicate.  At  Halifax  Inlet  it  usually  weighs  about  a  pound,  and  in 
some  seasons  quite  abundant,  in  others  rare.  It  gives  good  sport  on 
a  rod,  takes  mullet  bait  and  is  found  in  deep  channels.  Color  gray- 
ish ;  profile  steep,  form  compressed  ;  teeth  projecting  similar  to  those 
of  the  sheepshead. 


Sailor's  Choice — Pomadasys  fulvomaculatu^ — (Mitchell).  Are 
excellent  pan  fish,  very  abundant  in  the  bays  and  sounds  of  Florida  ; 
in  size  from  two  ounces  to  a  pound.  Resembles  in  form  the  scup 
of  Northern  waters.  A  very  strong  and  active  fish  for  its  size, 
making  fine  play  on  a  light  rod.  The  Synopsis  gives  it  a  length  of 
one  foot,  which  is  double  the  size  of  any  that  I  have  seen. 

JORDAN'S   DESCRIPTION. 

Light  brown,  silvery  below,  sides  with  numerous  orange  colored  and  yelloir 
spots  ;  those  above  the  lateral  line  in  oblique  lines,  those  below  in  horizontal  rows  ; 
vertical  fins  with  similar  spots  ;  head  blueish  with  yellow  spots  ;  angle  of  mouth 
and  gill  membranes  with  orange.  Body  oblong,  compressed,  not  much  elevated. 
Head  long  ;  snout  conic  ;  mouth  low  and  small,  the  maxillary  hardly  reaching  to 
the  nostrils  ;  outer  teeth  slender  and  rather  short  ;  eye  high,  4^  in  head,  nearly 
midway  in  its  length.  Dorsal  and  anal  entirely  naked,  with  a  sheath  of  scales 
at  base  ;  anterior  spines  of  ^  dorsal  higher  than  the  posterior;  spines,  gradu- 
ated; pectoral  moderate.  Head  2%  ',  depth  3.  D.  XII.,  16  ;  A.  III.,  12  ;  Lat. 
I.  75.  L.  I  foot.  Atlantic  coast  from  New  York  southward— a  food  fish  of 
some  importance. 


1/ 


V 


OHAPTEK  IX. 


The  Salt  Water  Catfish. — The  Conger  Eel. — The  Silver,  or 
White  Mullet. — The  Yellowtai,  or  Silver  Perch, 


Salt  Water  Catfish — Gaff  Topsail. — ^lurichthys  nyiarinys 
— (Mitchell). — This  may  be  set  down  as  a  game  fish,  being  strong, 
active,  and  enduring  in  fight.  Its  play  is  much  like  that  of 
the  channel  bass  or  redfish  of  the  same  waters,  and  it  takes  the  same 
baits.  In  the  spring  it  comes  into  the  inlets  and  bays  in  great  num- 
bers, and  becomes  rather  a  nuisance  to  the  angler,  being  an  unpleas- 
ant fish  to  handle  on  account  of  its  slimy  covering,  which  besmears 
the  hands  and  the  tackle,  and  its  long  barbed  pectoral  spines  inflict 
painful  wounds  on  the  incautious  angler.  It  is  a  handsomely  formed 
fish,  with  a  forked  tail,  long  dorsal  fin,  and  barbels  depending  from 
the  mouth.  Color  steel  blue  above,  below  silvery  ;  from  three  to  ten 
pounds  in  weight.  _  Flesh  white  and  firm,  and  well-flavored,  as  I 
have  found  from  experiment,  though  it  is  not  often  eaten.  The 
eggs  of  this  species  are  golden  yellow,  and  of  the  size  of  grapes, 
which  they  much  resemble,  in  bunches  of  ten  or  twelve.  The  fish- 
ermen say  that  this  cattish  carries  its  young,  when  hatched,  in  its 
mouth. 


Conger  Eel — Murmna  ocellata — (Agassiz). — I  have  never  seen 
the  common  eel  on  the  Florida  coast,  but  the  conger  is  found  in  cer- 
tain localities.  If  one  goes  near  nightfall  or  on  a  dark  lowery  day 
to  a  certain  deep  channel  about  a  mile  from  the  mouth  of  the  Halifax 
River,  he  may  capture  one  or  more  of  these  ferocious  fishes.  At 
the   breaking   out   of  the  Secession  war  there  was  at    this   place 


14:6  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

a  quantity  of  live  oak  timber  belonging  to  the  United  States 
government.  Some  of  this  was  burned  by  the  Confederates,  and 
the  rest  of  it  thrown  into  the  river,  where  it  still  lies  on  the  bottom, 
affording  hiding  places  for  groupers  and  conger  eels. 

The  angler  who  has  with  difficulty  played  one  of  these  congers, 
weighing  from  four  to  ten  pounds,  and  got  him  alongside  the  boat, 
will  find  that  he  has  caught  a  Tartar.  The  conger  has  an  immense 
mouth,  filled  with  long  and  sharp  teeth,  and  if  you  turn  him  loose 
in  the  boat  he  comes  at  you  open-mouthed,  like  a  mad  dog.  I  know 
that  the  first  one  I  caught  would  have  driven  Pacetti  and  myself 
overboard  if  he  had  not  luckily  disabled  it  with  an  oar.  After  that, 
P.  always  held  the  conger  outside  the  boat  with  a  gaff -hook,  while 
he  cut  off  its  head  with  a  big  knife.  We  got  five  of  them  that  day, 
weighing  from  four  to  eight  pounds,  and  when  we  took  them  home, 
although  the  meat  looked  white  and  delicate,  the  good  woman  of  the 
house  declined  to  cook  them,  saying  that  she  "  had  no  use  for 
snakes." 

In  early  times  in  England,  the  conger  was  considered  a  delicacy, 
and  history  tells  us  that  one  of  the  English  Kings  died  of  a  surfeit 
of  this  fish.  

MuLLLET — Mugil  lineatm — (Cuv.  and  Val.) — Silver  or  white  mul- 
le^r-^-M.  hrasiliensis — (Ag.) — Although  the  mullet  is  not  a  game  fish, 
yet  being  indispensable  to  the  angler  as  bait,  it  should  find  a 
place  among  the  game  fishes. 

All  along  the  Southern  coast,  in  the  inlets,  bays  and  rivers,  the 
mullet  is  found  in  immense  numbers,  and  being  mostly  in  shallow 
water,  is  easily  captured  with  the  cast  net,  an  implement  so  useful  to 
the  coast  people  that  they  could  scarcely  live  without  it.  Its  use  re- 
quires some  strength  of  arm  and  considerable  skill  and  practice  ; 
with  it  a  man  can  almost  always  procure  a  mess  of  fish — not  always, 
for  in  a  cold  norther  all  fish  will  betake  themselves  to  deep  water, 
where  the  cast  net  is  useless. 

In  winter  the  mullet  is  small  and  ill-flavored  for  human  food, 
though  it  is  always  good  for  fish  bait ;  but  in  summer  and  fall  it  is 
large,  fat,  and  so  well  flavored  as  to  be  the  favorite  food  fish  of  the 
natives.     At  this  season  it  is  salted  and  packed  for  winter  use  for 


FISHES    or   THE    EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST.  149 

the  people  of  the  interior,  taking  salt  well,  and  being  as  a  pickled 
fish  next  in  value  to  the  mackerel,  though  at  some  distance  behind. 
The  roe  of  the  mullet  being  salted,  dried  and  smoked,  is  a  rich  and 
palatable  food.  The  mullet  has  a  gizzard -like  organ  for  grinding  up 
the  small  Crustacea  and  mollusks  which  it  takes  into  its  stomach  with 
the  mud,  which  seems  to  be  its  principal  food.  Itself  is  the  food 
of  all  carniverous  fishes  and  birds,  as  well  as  of  mankind,  so  that 
but  for  being  a  very  prolific  species,  it  would  be  in  danger  of  exter- 
mination.    Size,  from  half  a  pound  to  six  pounds. 

If,  as  it  has  been  aflirmed,  the  mullet  will  sometimes  rise  to  a  fly, 
it  might  give  good  sport,  being  a  strong  and  active  fish,  capable  of 
leaping  out  of  the  water  like  a  trout. 

In  engaging  boatmen  and  guides  for  Florida  waters,  it  is  impor- 
tant to  select  those  who  can  use  a  cast  net.  I  knew  a  party  of 
anglers  from  Canada  who  came  to  camp  out  in  southern  Florida  one 
winter,  who,  neglecting  this  qualification,  found  their  trip  a  failure 
— they  could  get  no  bait. 

JORDAN    AND    GILBERT'S    DESCRIPTION. 

Mugil  fl'/^w/fl!— Striped  mullet  — Body  rather  elongate,  little  compressed,  sub- 
terete;  snout  not  broad,  moderately  depressed  ;  mouth  moderate,  lips  thin,  the  max- 
illary not  covered  by  the  preorbital  ;  angle  made  by  the  dentary  bones  obtuse,  or 
nearly  at  a  right  angle.  Scales  comparatively  small,  a  few  on  the  dorsal  and  anal 
fins.  Pectoral  fins  placed  little  above  the  axis  of  the  body.  Coloration  dark  blue- 
ish  above,  sides  silvery,  with  conspicuous  darker  lateral  stripes  ;  a  dusky  blotch  at 
base  of  pectorals.  Head  4  1-3  ;  depth  4;  D.  IV-i,  8  ;  A  III,  8  ;  scales  42 — i-^. 
Atlantic  coast  of  the  United  States  ;  very  abundant  southward,  where  it  is  much 
valued  as  a  food  fish. 


Yellow-taxl — Silver  Perch — Scioena  punctata — (Linn.) — This 
is  a  pretty  little  fish,  quite  abundant  in  some  parts  of  the  Florida 
coast,  which  affords  good  sport  on  a  light  rod^  and  is  a  well-flavored 
pan-fish.  In  Halifax  River  it  seldom  weighs  half  a  pound.  Color 
greenish  above,  below  silvery  ;  tail  yellowish. 


Besides  the  above   described  species,  which  belong  to  Southern 
"Waters,  we  find  on  the  Florida  coast  in  winter  some  species  which 


150  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

go  North  in  summer,  such  as  the  sheepshead,  bluefish,  kingfi8h7  or 
whiting,  blackfish,  and  Lafayette,  or  spot^all  abundant,  but  of  small 
gize.  Sheepshead,  from  half  a  pound  to  six  pounds,  can  be  taken  in 
numbers  which  would  astonish  a  New  York  angler — say  from  twenty 
to  fifty  in  a  tide,  and  they  afford  good  sport  on  a  rod  with  clams  or 
crabs  for  bait.  Bluefish  from  two  ounces  to  two  pounds  in  weight 
are  sometime*  abundant,  the  same  ferocious,  snapping,  greedy  fish 
which  on  the  Northern  coast  affords  so  much  sport  to  the  fisherman, 
and  which  chops  up  such  multitudes  of  small  fish.  Blackfish  seldom 
go  over  a  pound,  but  are  abundant,  and  "  excellent  meat,"  as  father 
Walton  says.  Whiting  run  from  three  ounces  to  a  pound,  and  af- 
ford fine  sport  with  light  tackle,  being  a  very  strong  and  active  fish. 
The  Lafayette,  or  spot,  is  abundant  but  small — average  four  ounces. 
All  this  seems  to  show  that  these  species  are  hatched  in  Southern 
waters  ;  and  go  North  in  summer  to  feed  and  grow. 

*In  addition  to  these  valuable  food  and  game  fishes,  we  encounter 
others  which  might  be  called  the  obstructive,  or  dangerous  species — 
those  which  destroy  our  tackle  and  give  us  trouble  and  annoyance. 
Such  are  the  sharks,  the  rays,  the  sawfishes  and  the  congers.  • 


CHAPTER  X. 


The  Sharks. — The  Sawfish. 


Sharks. — Several  species  are  found  on  the  Florida  coast ;  the 
common  brown,  or  dusky  shark,  the  shovel-nose,  the  hammer-head, 
the  sand  shark,  the  nurse  shark.  In  warm  weather  most  of  these 
are  abundant,  ferocious  and  troublesome.  They  cannot  bear  cold 
weather,  and  it  sometimes  happens  in  the  spring,  when  a  warm  spell 
has  brought  the  sharks  from  the  Gulf  Stream  to  the  coast  that  a  sud- 
den fall  in  the  temperature  destroys  many  of  these  delicate  mon- 
sters. The  common  brown  shark  grows  to  the  length  of  eight  or 
nine  feet,  and  destroys  great  quantities  of  fish.  When 'abundant,, 
they,  like  the  wolves,  take  courage  from  their  numbers,  and  become 
bold  and  aggressive,  although  usually  they  are  cowardly  for  creatures 
of  their  size  and  strength.  At  such  times  they  will  take  large  bass 
and  other  fish  away  from  the  angler  as  he  plays  them..  They  are 
sure  to  take  the  bait  if  they  see  it,  and  when  hooked  the  shark  takes 
a  turn  near  the  surface,  and  usually  cuts  off  the  hook,  unless  it  is- 
fixed  where  the  teeth  cannot  touch  it.  In  that  case  a  shark  of  good 
size  can  be  played  and  killed  on  a  rod,  I  have  killed  several  of  five 
feet  long,  and  they  did  not  make  so  long  a  fight  as  a  red  bass  of  half 
that  size.  I  once  killed  a  shark  five  feet  long  weighing  perhaps  fifty 
pounds,  in  half  an  hour  ;  when  gaffed  it  was  found  to  be  hooked 
on  the  outside,  near  the  pectoral  fin  ;  so  that  the  fish  could  exert  all 
its  strength.  When  catching  red  bass  on  the  sand  shoals  near  the 
Inlet,  I  have  known  the  sharks  to  collect  about  the  boat  in  such 

[11] 


154  FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

numbers,  and  become  so  bold,  thac  we  thought  it  prudent  to  change 
our  ground.  When  a  captured  shark  is  brought  alongside  the 
boat  he  will  sometimes  show  fight,  and  bite  a  piece  out  of  the  planks 
of  the  boat's  side.  He  is  easily  killed  by  a  blow  on  the  head  with 
a  club,  or  with  a  pistol  ball  in  the  same  place.  I  have  occasionally 
gone  out  shark-fishing  with  strangers  who  have  a  curiosity  to  see 
that  sport.  We  go  towards  night  to  some  sand-bank  on  the  channel, 
and  near  the  Inlet,  drive  a  stout  stake  into  the  sand,  to  which  we  at- 
tach the  end  of  a  half-incfi  rope  100  feet  long,  armed  with  a  big 
book  and  four  or  five  feet  of  chain.  This  hook  baited  with  a  three 
pound  fish  is  taken  with  a  boat  and  dropped  in  the  channel ;  the 
line  is  coiled  up  on  the  shore,  and  we  wait  for  results.  When  a  shark 
:finds  the  bait,  which  may  be  in. ten  minutes,  or  an  hour,  the  line 
slowly  moves  off  ;  when  time  is  given  for  swallowing  the  bait,  (there 
is  no  nibbling  in  this  kind  of  fishinc;)  we  give  a  strong  pull 
to  fasten  the  hook,  and  all  hands  lay  hold  of  the  line  to  bring  the 
captive  •  to  the  shorts.  '  The  sport  is  lively  for  a  few  minutes,  as  a 
shark  of  eight  feet  long  will  drag  three  or  four  men  to  the  water's 
edge,  when  we  have  to  give  him  line.  Ten  minutes  of  this  work 
will  tire  the  shark,  which  is  dragged  ashore  and  knocked  in  the 
head  with  "an  axe — but  beware  of  the  sweep  of  his  tail,  and  trust 
not  yourself  near  his  head  ;  either  end  of  him  is  dangerous. 

^The  first  time  I  went  shark  fishing,  we  caught  seven,  from  six  to 
eight  feet  long,  in  an  hour's  time.  A  man  who  was  planting  in  that 
neighborhood  came  with  a  large  boat  and  took  them  away  for  his 
compost  heap.  The  livers  contain  from  one  to  three  gallons  of  oil, 
excellent  for  leather  dressing..  jC  C.  Pacetti  during  the  war  made 
a  business  of  catching  sharks  for  their  oil,  which  he  sold  to  the  tan- 
ners at  one  dollar  per  gallon.  He  had  a  windlass  at  the  land- 
ing near  his  house,  with  which  big  reel  he  could  handle  a  shark 
alone,  or  if  too  large,  his  wife  could  help  him  land  the  monster.  He 
used  to  set  his  line  at  night,  and  usually  found  a  shark  on  it  in  the 
morning,  unless,  as  sometimes  happened,  a  bigger  shark  would  eat 
him  up,  all  but  the  head.  He  once  found  in  the  stomach  of  a  large 
shark,  half  of  an  alligator  five  or  six  feet  long  when  living  —  the 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST.  155 

shark's  teeth  had  cut  him  in  two,  spite  of  his  scale  armor.  What 
chance  would  a  man  have  in  those  terrible  jaws  ? 

Fortunately,  the  sharks  on  this  coast  feed  so  freely  on  fish  that 
they  do  not  care  to  attack  mankind.  I  have  heard  of  no  well- 
authenticated  instance  of  human  beings  eaten  by  them.  The  bodies 
of  some  drowned  persons  have  disappeared,  which  may  have  been 
devoured  by  sharks,  but  there  is  no  evidence  of  it.  Mr.  Pacetti, 
iirho  has  been  among  them  all  his  life,  and  has  caught  hundreds  of 
them  with  nets  and  hooks,  tells  me  th  it  he  was  never  attacked  but 
once  by  a  shark  He  was  fishing  on  the  beach  with  a  net  in  the 
night,  and  wading  in  the  surf  a  shark  seized  him  by  the  leg.  Having 
thick  canvass  trousers  on,  he  escaped  unwounded,  and  he  thought 
the  shark  hardly  knew  what  it  was  he  attacked.  Never  having 
seen,  what  is  commonly  afiirmed,  that  the  shark  must  turn  on  his 
baclt  to  seize  his  prey,  I  asked  Pacetti  what  his  experience  was  in 
the  matjter.  His  reply  was,  "  A  shark  lays  hold  like  any  other  fich, 
and  he  would  have  to  go  hungry  if  he  had  to  turn  over  to  bite, 
— most  any  fish  would  get  away  from  him." 

'A^^ other  question  is,  how  large  do  they  grow?  I  have  seen  in  the 
Indian  Ocean,  a  leopard  shark  fully  twenty-five  feet  long  and  as  wide 
as  the  ship's  long  boat.  It  kept  about  the  ship  on  a  calm  day  with 
smooth  water,  for  some  hours,  but  would  not  touch  a  bait,  which 
was  fortunate,  for  no  tackle  that  we  had  on  board  would  have  held 
such  a  fish.  The  mate  struck  at  it  with  a  harpoon,  which  bounded 
off  from  the  tough  and  elastic  hide,  and  the  shark  left  us.  It  was 
covered  with  light  colored  spots  on  a  darker  ground — a  terrible  look- 
inof  creature,  which  could  have  swallowed  an  ox. 

The  Shovel-nose  Shark  is  a  much  more  active  species  ;  when 
hooked,  it  never  stops  to  be  played,  but  goes  off  like  a  locomotire, 
taking  the  tackle  with  it. 

The  Hammmek-head,  or  Ground  jshark,  is  a  strange  looking 
creature,  with  the  headset  at  right  angles  with  the  body;  the  eyes  at 
the  extreme  points  of  the  head,  and  the  mouth  underneath  like  other 
sharks.  This  species  rarely  appear  on  the  surface  of  the  water;  it 
is  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  ferocious  and  dangerous  of  th©  shark 


15o  FISHES    OF     rUE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

family.     I  have  killed  small  ones  of  three  feet  long,  on  a  rod. 

The  Nurse  Shark — ScylUum  cirratum — (Cuv.) — This  is  a  sluggish 
species  of  shark,  reddish  brown  in  color,  eyes  small,  barbs  depending 
from  the  mouth,  teeth  very  small,  ^but  strong.  I  have  seen  notches 
bitten  out  of  a  knife  by  this  fish,  in  cutting  out  a  hook;  lives  on  tbe 
bottom,  and  when  it  takes  a  hook  gives  no  play  at  all,  but  hangs 
like  a  dead  weight.  From  five  to  ten  feet  long,  according  to  Pro- 
fessor Jordan,  and  inhabits  warm  latitudes. 


Sawfish. — Pridis  antiquorum —  (Latham-^"^-'  Belongs  to  the  Se- 
lachians, or  shark  family,  and  resembles  a  shark  in  form  and  arrange- 
ment of  fins,  with  a  long  bony  protuberance  extending  from  the 
uppej  jaw.  This  is  about  one-quarter  to  one  third  the  length  of  the 
fish;  has  at  short  intervals  -sharp  spines  projecting  from  eacli  side, 
like  the  teeth  of  a  comb,  making  a  fearful  weapon,  with  which  the 
saw-fish  strikes  and  kills  its  prey,  consisting  of  mullet  and  other  fish. 
The  mouth  is  large  and  toothless,  and  is  situated,  like  the  shark's,^ 
beneath  the  snout  ;  into  this  the  fish  which  are  killed  by  the  saw 
are  received.  It  is  sluggish,  lying  usually  on  the  bottom,  waiting 
for  its  prey,  and  when  disturbed  by  a  passing  boat  will,  if  of  large 
size,  strike  powerful  and  dangerous  blows  with  the  saw,  which  has- 
a  lateral  motion. 

Between  the  saw-fish  and  the  shark  are  frequent  battles,  and  as 
the  latter  is  very  fond  of  its  cousin,  the  saw  is  often  found  on  the 
beach,  the  wearer  having  been  devoured.  This  species  grows  to  the 
length  of  fifteen  feet,  and  are  then  formidable  to  encounter.  The 
liver  contains  much  oil,  for  which  the  saw-fish  is  sometimes  har- 
pooned *•  I  have  taken  the  smaller  specimens  of  three  or  four  feet 
long  with  rod  and  reel ;  they  take  the  bait  quietly,  so  that  you  thmk 
your  hook  is  fast  to  the  bottom  ;  after  long  pulling,  up  comesfirst  a 
savage  looking  saw,  striking  right  and  left.  To  disablf*  this  fish 
strike  it  a  heavy  blow  with  a  club  at  the  junction  of  the  saw  with 
the  head;  by  this  it  is  paralyzed  and  can  be  handled  with  impunity. 
The  islanders  of  the  Pacific  ocean  mount  this  saw  upon  a  handle 
and  use  it  for  a  sword. 


CHAPTER  XL 


The  Eays. 


To  the  class  of  Selachians  the  rays  also  belong,  and  many  species 
of  them  are  found  on  the  Florida  coast,  from  the  enormous  devil- 
fish, which  reaches  a  width  of  eighteen  or  twenty  feet,  to  the  little 
skate,  or  old  maid,  one  foot  in  length. 

«  That  which  we  principally  meet  with,  the  stingray,  although  not 
properly  a  game  fish,  yet  as  it  often  affords  the  angler  considerable 
sport,  although  involuntarily,  we  must  include  it  in  our  list,  and 
under  the  name  of  stingray,  stingaree,  or  cliim-cr2icker-rJ)as7/atis 
centrums — (Mitchell.)  It  is  thus  described  :  "  Disk  a  little  broader 
than  long,  its  anterior  angle  obtuse.  Tail  relatively  stout,  about 
one-third  longer  than  the  disk.  Width  of  mouth  about  half  its  dis- 
tance from  the  tip  of  the  snout.  Caudal  spine  one  and  a-half  times 
width  of  mouth.  Spiracles  very  large.  Color  uniform  brownish. 
Length  eight  ieety— Jordan  and  Gilberfs  Synopsis. 

To  this  I  should  add  that  the  stingray  has  a  pavement  of  enam« 
bled  teeth,  with  which  it  can  crush  clams  or  oysters,  and  a  bone  five 
or  six  inches  long  attached  to  the  tail,  one-third  the  distance  from 
its  extremity  ;  this  bone  is  barbed  like  a  fish-hook  along  its  sides, 
and  can  be  erected  or  depressed  by  the  fish.  When  the  ray  strikes 
its  enemy  it  draws  the  long  whip-like  tail  aoross  the  object,  the 
bone  tears  through  the  flesh  making  a  fearful  wound,  the  danger  of 
i«rhich  seems  to  be  aggi-avated  by  the  poisonous  nature  of  a  black 
fllimy  matter  which  covers  the  bone  ;  however  this  may  be,  the 
-wound  is  exeremely  painful,  and    very  dangerous,  often  producing 


158  riSHES   OF   THE  EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

lockjaw.  The  fishermen  dread  the  stingray,  and  with  reason,  ;  s  it 
is  often  /"ound  lying  on  the  flats  and  sand  bars,  where  the  net  is  cast. 
My  friend  Pacetti  has  been  several  times  struck  by  the  rays,  an^ 
onc«  he  came  near  losing  his  leg  from  the  wound. 

In  fishing  for  bass  and  sheepshead  the  angler  will  sometimes  find 
his  hook  apparently  fast  to  the  bottom,  and  on  pulling  on  it,  the  line 
will  move  slowly  away  with  irresistible  force — this  for  thirty  or  forty 
yards,  when  it  will  stop  for  ten  or  fifteen  minutes  and  then  move  on 
again,  in  the  same  slow,  resistless  way,  as  if  a  yoke  of  oxen  were 
hitched.  If  the  angler  wishes  to  kill  the  fish  he  must  raise  his  an- 
chor and  follow  wherever  the  ray  may  lead  him.  In  this  way,  if  the 
ray  is  of  moderate  size,  say  fifty  or  sixty  pounds,  he  may  in  an  hour's 
time  bring  his  fish  to  the  gaff.  But  this  must  not  be  attempted 
rashly,  for  as  soon  as  the  ray  is  touched  with  the  gaff,  it  strikes  an 
accurate  blow  with  its  long  whip  towards  the  gaffer.  The  staff,  or 
handle  should  be  four  or  five  feet  long,  and  the  arm  that  holds  it 
strong,  otherwise  it  will  be  wrenched  from  its  grasp.  If  the  boat- 
man  understands  his  business  he  will  [insert  the  gaff  near  the  head 
of  the  ray  and  quickly  turn  the  fish  upon  its  back  alongside  the  boat,^ 
then  with  a  heavy  and  sharp  knife  stab  the  ray  several  times  in  the 
throat.  If  properly  done,  the  blood  will  gush  forth  as  if  with  the 
strokes  of  a  pump  and  quickly  exhaust  the  powers  of  the  fish.  When 
dead,  if  the  sting  is  wanted  for  a  trophy,  tow  the  carcass  to  the 
shore  and  cut  off  the  tail,  which  much  resembles  one  of  those  long 
black  leather  covered  waggon  whips,  used  in  the  S^uth.  Set  the 
carcass  adrift  on  the  tide,  and  if  there  has  not  been  a  shark  seen  that 
day,  in  five  minutes  two  or  three  of  those  ugly  brutes  will  be  tugging 
and  tearing  at  the  carcass  of  their  cousin,  the  ray.  Thex-e  is  no 
better  bait  for  a  shark  than  a  chunk  from  a  ray's  fin;  and  indeed  the 
flesh  is  white  and  delicate  in  appearance,  and  is  considered  a  delicact 
by  many  nations  less  fastidious  than  Americans.  The  principal  food 
of  the  ray  is  shell-fish,  and  I  have  often  seen  it  when  dying  vomit 
forth  a  pint  or  more  of  small  mollusks. 

I  once  hooked  a  ray  up  the  river  about  half  a  mile  from  home  and 
undertook  to  drive  it  to  the  landing.     It  towed  me  about  the  river 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  159 

for  an  hour,  and  I  had  got  my  team  well  in  hand,  when  it  sulked  and 
stopped  on  the  bottom.  The  boatman  would  punch  it  with  a  pole 
and  start  it  again.  Finally  it  got  the  boat  into  deep  water  where  the 
pole  could  not  reach  it,  and  as  we  lay  there  anchoied  in  the  channel 
n  schooner  came  up  the  river  before  the  wind,  and  to  avoid  being 
run  down  we  had  to  cut  loose  from  our  fish. 

New-comers  to  Florida,  and  especially  those  fror^  the  West,  who 
hav  ?  never  seen  anything  larger  than  a  catfish  or  pickerel,  are  at 
first  much  interested  in  the  capture  of  sharks  and  rays,  but  after  a 
while  the  sport  loses  its  zest,  and  we  are  glad  to  cut  loose  from  these 
unmanageable  monsters,  with  as  little  loss  of  time  and  tackle  as 
may  be. 

The  largest  stingray  I  ever  saw  captured  was  taken  by  a  young 
native  fisherman  of  twelve  years  old,  with  a  hand  line.  It  was  ten 
and  a-half  feet  lonsc,  and  must  have  weighed  150  pounds.  I  have 
killed  them  of  sixty  or  seventy  pounds,  on  a  rod. 

The  whipray,  or  eagleray — Rata  aquila — (Linn.) — Is  about  the" 
same  size  as  the  stingray,  but  a  much  more  active  fish.  When 
hooked  it  is  impossible  to  check  it  at  all-  -away  goes  fish  and  tackle. 
It  is  often  seen  sporting  on  the  surface  and  leaping  from  the  water. 
Tail  very  long  and  slender.  Food  like  that  of  other  rays,  principally 
raollusks.  It  also  goes  by  the  name  of  clam-cracker  ;  is  much  less 
abundant  than  the  stingray. 


CHAPTER  XII 


TARPUM— TARPON— SILVER  KING. 


^  \^Megalops  thrissoides.] 

BY    AL.    FRESCO. 

For  life  I  can't  help  scribbling  once  a  week 

Firing  old  readers,  nor  discovering  new, 
In  youth  I  wrote  because  my  mind  was  full 

And  now  because  I  feel  it  growing  dull. 

But  "  why  then  publish  ?  " — There  are  no  rewards 
Of  fame  or  profit  when  the  world  grows  weary, 

I  ask  in  turn, — why  do  we  play  at  cards.? 

Why  fish  ?     Why  read  ? — To  make  the  hours  less  dreary. 

In  journals  devoted  to  sports  of  forest  and  stream,  we  frequently 
notice  references  to  the  lordly  salmon,  the  noble  striped  bass,  the 
plucky  "  bronze  backers,"  and  the  speckled  beauties — but  the  tar- 
pon, "the  Noblest  Roman  "  ot  them  all — the  game  fish  joar  excell- 
ence of  American  waters  is  seldom  noticed.  When  the  acrobatic 
performances,  and  the  fighting  qualities  of  this  noble  fish  become 
known,  a  new  revolution  will  present  itself  to  those  who  can  enjoy 
true  piscatorial  sport.  In  a  recent  communication  published  in  one 
of  your  contemporaries,  that  accomplished  writer  "  S.  C.  C."  referred 
to  the  fighting  qualities  of  the  tarpon  ;    and  in  writing  comparative- 


FISHES    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  161 

ly  of  like  qualities  in  the  salmon,  black  bass,  striped  bass  and  brook 
I  rout,  he  rated  the  first  at  five  and  the  four  latter  at  one. 

This  fish  is  common  in  Florida,  its  habitat  extending  from  Texas 
to  the  Georgia  line,  and  possibly  further  north.  At  the  mouth  of  the 
St.  Johns  River  it  is  known  as  the  jew  fish  ;  at  some  points  as  the 
silver  fish.  By  Captain  Romans,  the  orthography  used  was  tarpum, 
and  this  has  been  adopted  by  "  S.  C.  C  ;  "  and  I  find  it  spelled  tar- 
pum in  the  report  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission  for  1880. 
This  fish  is  very  common  on  the  South  West  Coast  of  Florida  where 
it  is  known  as  tarpon.  It  was- deemed  advisable  to  change  the  name 
of  Salt  Spring,  a  tributary  of  the  Anclote  River,  and  owing  to  the 
great  number  of  this  fish  visiting  it,  it  has  been  named  Tarpon 
Spring.  The  authority  for  the  use  of  the  word  tarpum  is  as  old  as 
Captain  Romans  ;  but,  in  my  wanderings  in  this  State,  I  found  the 
fish  called  tarpon  and  not  tarpum,  and  I  use  the  former  term,  claim- 
ing that  the  most  common  name  in  use  should  be  adopted. 

In  its  habits,  the  tarpon  differs  in  different  localities.  In  the  St. 
Johns  River  they  put  in  an  appearance  in  June,  and  leave  in  October* 
for  warmer  waters  and  pastures  new.  It  is  probable  that  they  follow 
the  coast  line  to  the  southward  in  the  autumn,  and  winter  among  the 
Florida  Keys.  They  can  be  found  at  all  seasons  in  the  streams  of  the 
.southeast  and  southwest  portions  of  the  State.  A  friend  who  spent 
the  last  two  winters  collecting  in  Estero  Bay,  informed  me  that  they 
entered  the  bay  on  the  flood  and  left  it  on  the  ebb  tide.  In  many  of 
the  streams  of  Southwest  Florida,  they  seem  to  be  residents,  and  do 
not  visit  the  lower  and  salty  portions.  A  majority  oi  these  fish 
summering  in  the  St.  Johns  River,  enter  the  stream  on  the  flood,  and 
leave  it  on  the  ebb  tide,  probably  spending  a  short  time  between 
the  tides,  about  the  bar  or  the  shoals  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  Mile 
Point  one  mile  above  Mayport,  Shell  Bank  below  Mount  Caroline, 
and  the  Back  Channel  east  of  Uames  Point  Light,  seem  to  be  fa- 
vorite haunts  of  the  tarpon,  that  do  not  leave  the  river  on  the  ebb 
iide. 

On  one  occasion,  I  was  anchored  over-night  near  Mile  Point,  and 
an  immense  number  of  moss  bunkers  had  collected  in  the  eddy  astern 
of  my  boat.     It  appeared  to  me  that  hundreds  of  tarpon  had  gather- 


162  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

ed  and  resolved  upon  the  destruction  of  the  bunkers.  At  about  10 
p.  M.,  the  tarpon  commenced  jumping  and  slashing,  and  the  noise 
made  by  the  fish  prevented  me  from  sleeping.  Midnight  arrived, 
and  as  "  Nature's  sweet  restorer,  balmy  sleep"  would  not  visit  me,  I 
baited  my  tarpon  line,  and  permitted  my  bait  to  float  with  the  tide 
to  the  point  where  the  vaulters  were  feeding :  I,  like  "  p  itience 
seated  on  a  monument,"  fished  and  waited  ;  but  as  I  could  not  secure 
a  bite,  I  retired  to  my  blankets  at  2.30  a.  m.,  and  if  not  a  wiser,  I 
was  a  madder  man  than  at  turning  in  time  the  previous  evening. 

In  many  of  the  streams  of  the  southwest  coast  there  exist  broad 
and  shallow  reaches  of  water,  the  bottom  being  covered  with  a  dense 
growth  of  grass.  The  tarpon  enter  the  grass,  and  approach  the  shore 
as  closely  as  possible  without  exposing  their  backs,  their  object  being 
apparently  to  bask  in  the  sunshine.  If  a  boat  should  approach  close 
enough  to  disturb  them,  they  rush  for  the  deep  water  with  lightning 
like  rapidity.  This  peculiar  trait,  I  have  more  especially  noticed  on 
the  Hora'>sassa  River,  and  at  Gordan's  pass  and  Lagoon.  This  prac- 
tice of  "  laying  up,"  I  have  not  noticed  on  the  St.  John's  River.  In 
some  of  the  streams  of  South  Florida  they  seem  to  live  in  fresh 
water,  as  in  the  upper  portions  of  the  Homosassa,  Calloosahatchee> 
Rogers,  and  Harneys  Rivers.  On  the  Calloosahatchee,  above  the 
islands,  the  water  is  scarcely  brackish,  and  at  this  point,  these  fish 
exist  in  immense  numbers.  When  I  ascended  this  stream  in  1875,  at 
the  point  referred  to,  the  fish  were  so  plentiful  tnat  one  or  more 
could  be  seen  breaking  the  water  at  all  times.  To  the  fisherman  who 
has  been  accustomed  to  the  depopulated  streams  of  the  north,  this 
may  seem  a  "fish  story,"  but  unles*  they  visit  the  streams  of  South 
Florida,  they  cannot  form  the  faintest  idea  of  the  immense  quantity 
of  fish  to  be  found  in  that  section. 

In  outline,  the  tarpon  somewhat  resembles  a  striped  bass.  It  is 
covered  with  large  ivory-like  scales  ;  about  one-third  of  the  s^lrface 
of  each  scale  being  ornamented  with  a  coating  resembling  frosted 
silver.  One  of  the  smaller  scales  in  the  way  of  a  piscatorial  visiting 
card  I  enclose  for  the  inspection  of  the  editor. 

I  enquired  of  many  persons  if  this  fish  was  edible,  and  could  not 
obtain  any  information.      Possessing  ichthyophagous  tendencies,  in 


FISHES    OF   THE    EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST.  163 

July  last  I  rt'solved  upon  determining  this  matter  and  cut  some 
steaks  from  a  specimen  weighing  128  pounds.  I  had  them  fried,  and 
upon  testing  them  I  arrived  at  the  conclusion,  that  as  an  edible  fish 
the  tarpon  rates  next  to  the  pompano.  To  me  it  resembles  a  spring 
chicken  in  flavor.  Several  gentlemen  tasted  the  fish  and  confirmed 
my  opinion.  Since  that  time  the  flesh  of  this  fish  has  been  sold  ia 
this  market  at  ten  cents  per  pound.  The  flesh  is  very  tender  and  of 
a  light  walnut  tint.  To  many  the  color  of  the  flesh  would  be  aa 
objection. 

As  a  vaulter  the  tarpon  is  unequalled,  and  his  aerial  feats  "  must  be- 
seen  to  be  appreciated."  On  one  occasion  ray  friend  G.  and  a  com- 
panion, were  rowing  through  Salt  River  (a  tributary  of  the  Homo- 
sagsa)  in  a  sixteen-foot  Whitehall  boat.  A  tarpon  was  sunning  him- 
self in  the  grass,  and  being  disturbed  made  for  deep  water.  Find-^ 
ing  the  water  shallow,  and  the  boat  in  the  way,  he  endeavored  to 
clear  it  at  an  angle.  The  head  of  the  fish  came  in  contact  with  the 
side  of  G's  companion,  which  contact  deflected  him  from  his  course> 
and  he  passed  under  one  of  the  boat  seats.  A  pocket  knife  was  used 
to  '*  settle  his  hash,"  but  it  would  not  penetrate  the  ivory-like  armor 
of  the  fish.  Oars  were  used  to  dispatch  the  prisoner,  but  it  wa» 
found  that  if  he  was  interfered  with  the  boat  would  suffer  from  the 
vigorous  blows  of  his  head  and  tail.  G.  seated  himself  in  the  stern,, 
and  his  companion  in  the  bow  and  for  the  nonce  the  fish  was 
awarded  the  post  of  honor  unmolested.  When  peace  was  declared,, 
the  gentlemen  resumed  their  oars,  but  the  one  who  deflected  the  silver 
king  in  his  course,  found  that  he  could  not  "paddle  his  own  canoe," 
for  several  of  his  ribs  were  fractured.  G.  rowed  the  boat  to  Jones* 
Landing  on  the  Homosassa,  and  the  tarpon  was  weighed,  tipping  the 
scales  at  153  pounds.  Some  of  your  readers  will  probably  pronounce 
this  a  "  fi«;h  story,"  but  if  they  could  see  a  tarpon  rush  through  the 
water,  and  form  a  just  estimate  of  the  momentum  of  a  moving  fish 
of  this  weight,  they  would  not  question  the  correctness  of  the  above 
statement. 

Several  years  since,  the  side  wheel  river  steamer  Water  Lily  wa» 
en  route  from  Jacksonville  to  Mayport.  The  captain  was  seated  on 
a  chair  in  the  centre  of  the  forward  deck,  with  his  back  to  the  for- 


164  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

ward  house.  As  the  boat  was  passing  St.  Johns  Bluff,  a  small 
frisky  tarpon  leaped  from  the  water,  cleared  the  guards,  and  landed 
in  the  captain's  lap.  The  juvenile  vaulter  was  secured,  and  weighed 
sixty-eight  pounds,  being  the  smallest  specimen  that  has  been  cap- 
tured in  this  river  to  my  knowledge. 

About  a  year  since  a  party  was  sailing  a  boat  in  Clear  Water 
Harbor,  and  a  frolicsome  tarpon  amused  himself  by  jumping  over 
the  boat,  and  in  his  course  stuck  above  the  boom,  and  in  an  instant 
the  old  sail  was  in  tatters. 

Some  years  since  a  man  was  fishing  for  channel  bass,  in  an  ancient 
dug  out  near  the  mouth  of  Trout  Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  St.  Johns 
River.  A  jovial  tarpon  vaulted  in  the  air,  landed  in  the  canoe,  and 
the  bottom  was  knocked  out  of  the  machine.  The  fish  escaped,  the 
■fisherman  caught  a  ducking,  and  was  rescued  by  parties  anchored 
near  by. 

When  in  a  vaulting  mood,  I  have  hundreds  of  times  seen  large 
tarpon  clear  the  water  with  their  tails  from  one  to  four  feet.  On 
*Dne  occasion  my  friend  P.  was  fishing  at  Mile  Point  and  a  large 
frisky  tarpon  jumped  near  his  boat,  rounded  the  sand  bar  and  re- 
peated his  aerial  feats  fifteen  times.  In  Sept.  '81  I  wa«  fishing  at 
the  same  point  for  these  fish,  using  a  large  cork  float,  for  tackle  a 
gang  of  large  Virginia  hooks,  and  for  bait  two  halves  of  a  mullet, 
'^rhe  float  disappeared,  and  instantly  there  appeared  in  the  air,  the 
largest  tarpon  I  ever  saw.  He  left  the  water  at  an  angle,  and,  as 
improbable  as  it  may  appear  to  the  uninterested,  he  landed  at  least 
twenty  feet  from  where  he  left  his  native  element.  Whilst  in  the 
air  he  opened  his  capacious  mouth,  shook  his  head  like  a  terrier 
shaking  a  rat,  and  my  gang  of  hooks  went  flying  tiirough  the  air. 
On  many  occasions  I  have  had  these  fish  seize  my  bait  and  run  with 
lightning  like  rapidity  for  twenty  or  a  hundred  yards,  then  leap  into 
the  air,  shake  their  heads  and  expel  the  bait. 

It  has  been  my  lot  to  capture  many  varieties  of  fish  in  various 
portions  of  the  United  States,  and  in  different  oceans  of  this  world, 
but  I  never  found  anything  tO'  even  approach  the  liglUniDg-like 
dashes  of  the  tarpon.  On  one  occasion  my  fnenu  i^.  yyu^  ...^^mg 
opposite  the  old  Light  House  at  Mayport  for  channel  bass.     Bites 


FISHES    or    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  165 

were  few  and  far  between,  and  B.  reclined  backwards  on  the  stern 
sheets  of  the  boat  holding  the  line  between  his  finger  and  thumb. 
One  of  these  fish  seized  his  bait  and  started  off,  and  before  he  could 
clear  his  finger  from  the  line  it  was  cut  to  the  bone.  During  the 
summer  it  is  common  to  meet  amateur  fishermen  on  our  streets, 
o-nd  they  will  exhibit  their  scarred  fingers  and  laughingly  reply 
«I  hooked  him  but  he  left." 

For  vaulting  exploits  tarpon  cannot  be  equalled  by  anything  in- 
habiting ocean  or  river.  Among  the  colored  people  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Trout  creek  they  have  the  reputation  of  throwing  sinkers 
at  the  fishermen,  and  when  one  of  these  gentry  is  fishing  for  channel 
bass,  and  hooks  a  tarpon,  he  reclines  on  the  boat  seat,  and  permits 
the  silver  king  to  vault  and  rush  unmolested.  The  lead-throwing 
notion  is  the  result  of  the  jumping  proclivities  of  this  fish.  Several 
years  since,  a  representative  of  the  colored  persuasion  hooked  a  large 
one,  and  attempted  to  land  him  by  "Scotch  navigation."  When  the 
fish  neared  the  boat,  he  went  through  one  of  his  aerial  performances, 
and  his  head  was  high  above  the  boat.  The  darkey  kept  a  taut  line; 
the  hook  tore  out;  the  traction  of  the  fisherman  caused  the  sinker  to 
come  in-board,  and  the  darkey's  pate  came  in  contact  with  a  heavy 
piece  of  lead.  From  information  obtained  I  have  reason  to  believe 
that  in  the. southern  portions  of  the  State  these  fish  vault  in  the  air, 
when  they  are  in  a  frolicsome  mood;  but  in  all  my  wanderings  in 
that  portion  of  the  State  I  never  witnessed  the  performance,  but 
have  frequently  seen  them  break  water  like  a  bluefish. 

I'he  capture  of  a  tarpon  with  a  hook  and  line  is  a  difficult  under- 
taking. Every  summer  many  are  hooked,  but  few  are  landed.  Dur- 
ing the  past  season  in  this  section  but  five  have  been  captured,  the 
smallest  weighing  125  and  the  largest  198  pounds,  or  an  average  of 
147  pounds.  We  frequently  read  of  the  excitement  attending  the 
capture  of  a  bronze  backer  or  a  speckled  beauty,  but  those  who  give 
their  experiences  should  hitch  on  to  a  tarpon,  and  they  would  dis- 
cover "  music  in  the  air  "  worth  recording  ;  for  the  capture  of  a  sil- 
ver king  is  a  bright  spot  in  a  fisherman's  existence,  and  a  fact  worth 
referring  to  at  a  camp-fire. 

The  other  day  my  friend  Dr.  Q.  informed  me  that  during  one 


166  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC    COAST. 

forenoon  in  August  last,  at  Mile  Point,  he  had  ten  tarpon  bites  and 
failed  to  land  a  fish.  The  inside  of  the  mouth  of  this  fish  is  like 
gutta-percha.  The  tongue  resembles  that  of  a  calf,  and  with  it  they 
seem  to  eject  the  bait.  The  lower  jaw  points  upwards,  and  on  the 
upper  are  two  moveable  plates,  armed  with  minute  teeth.  With 
these  armed  plates  they  seem  to  cut  the  line. 

The  tarpon  takes  the  bait  near  the  surface  or  at  the  bottom.  At 
times,  after  taking  the  bait  they  will  instantly  appear  in  the  air  near 
the  boat;  and  at  others  they  wdll  run  with  lightning-like  rapidity 
ior  a  long  distance,  and  then  indulge  in  their  acrobatic  performances. 
It  seems  that  they  hold  the  bait  in  their  mouths,  and  when  they 
jump  and  are  in  the  air,  shake  their  heads  and  eject  the  bait.  It  is  a 
•common  thing  for  them  to  retain  the  bait  until  they  jump,  and  to 
the  astonishment  of  the  fishermen  when  they  reach  the  water  the 
bait  is  clear  and  the  fish  is  off  at  a  tangent. 

Over  tvo  years  since  I  prepared  a  tackle  which  I  fancied  would 
c-ircumvent  the  silvery  beauties.  I  attached  three  of  Job  Johnson's 
"No.  2  drum  hooks  to  a  stout  cotton  snood.  I  lapped  the  hooks  one 
above  the  other,  so  that  the  snood  was  not  exposed.  I  then  passed 
the  three  ho'yks  through  a  half  mullet,  and  was  rewarded  with  a 
bite.  I  ''  yanked,"  and  the  performance  commenced.  My  line  was 
600  feet  in  length,  and  after  a  half  hour's  vaulting  and  lightning- 
like rushes  the  fish  succumued.  I  requested  the  boatman  to  up 
anchor  and  row  for  shore.  The  fish  quietly  followed  the  boat,  but 
before  I  reached  the  beach  the  snood  was  cut  off  with  his  scissor-like 
jaws.  Upon  examining  my  tackle  I  found  that  he  had  swallowed 
the  bait,  and  the  unprotected  portion  of  the  snood  had  been  cut  by 
the  moveable  maxillary  plates  of  the  fish. 

'J'o  give  your  readers  some  idea  of  the  strength  of  the  tarpon,  I 
ghall  merely  refer  to  two  instances  illustrative  of  their  prowess.  On 
one  occasion  I  was  fishing  for  channel  bass,  and  McMillen,  the  boat- 
man, requested  permission  to  put  out  my  tarpon  line.  I  baited  the 
gang  of  hooks  mounted  on  piano  wire.  On  a  board  was  wound 
700  feet  of  line.  I  requested  McMillen  to  unwind  all  the  line  and 
coil  it  on  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  and  if  he  hooked  a  fish,  to  pass  the 
line  to  rae.    Very  soon  I  saw  a  tarpon  vault  in  the  air,  and  on  reach- 


FISHES    or    THE    EASl    ATLANTIC    COAST.  1G7 

ing  the  water  cut  and  slash  in  an  unusual  manner.  I  yelled  to  Mac 
to  "give  him  more  lino,"  and  as  my  back  wag  towards  the  boatman 
1  could  not  understand  why  he  did  not  obey  instructions.  I  turned 
round  and  found  that  he  had  not  unwrapped  the  line.  He  had 
braced  his  feet  against  a  seat  and  had  a  death  grip  on  the  board  on 
which  the  line  was  wrapped.  The  result  was  a  heavy  cable  laid  cot- 
ton line  parted. 

Some  years  since  several  of  my  friends  were  casting  in  the  surf  at 
Pellican  Island  for  channel  bass.  In  the  party  was  an  ardent  fish- 
erman, a  boy  of  fourteen.  To  secure  it,  he  had  fastened  one  end  of 
his  line  around  his  waist.  He  baited  his  hook  and  threw  it  as  far  as 
practicable  from  the  shore,  and  hooked  a  fish.  In-cmtly  the  boy 
started  for  the  coast  of  Africa,  struggling  and  yelling.  The  gentle- 
men rushed  into  the  surf,  rescued  the  boy,  and  landed  the  parae 
moving  power  at  the  other  end,  which  proved  to  be  a  tarpon  weigh- 
ing eighty-three  pounds. 

After  testing  various  kmds  of  tackle,  I  have  adopted  a  barbarous 
and  possibly  an  unsportsmanlike  rig  for  the  capture  of  this  noble 
fish.  I  take  the  heaviest  piano  wire  obtainable,  and  make  three 
joints,  four  inches  long,  and  three,  six  inches  in  length.  The  joints 
of  the  links  are  made  by  heating  the  ware  in  the  fire,  bending  each 
end,  allowing  half  an  inch  for  soldering.  Before  soldering,  I  polish 
each  piece  of  wire  with  emery  paper,  and  tin  it  to  prevent  rusting. 
To  the  upper  link  I  attach  a  strong  brass  swivel  two  and  one-half 
inches  in  length.  I  wrap  the  ends  of  the  wire  below  the  loops  with 
fine  copper  wire,  and  finish  the  job  with  common  solder.  I  use  hooks 
two  inches  from  tip  to  shank.  To  each  of  the  three  lower  links  I 
solder  two  hooks  at  a  right  angle.  When  completed,  the  hooks  are 
in  two  lines.  For  bait  I  cut  a  mullet  in  half  from  mouth  to  tail.  I 
l)ass  one  hook  through  the  eye,  one  amidships,  and  the  other  near  the 
tail.  Three  hooks  pass  through  the  bait,  with  points  exposed,  and 
the  three  others  pass  beyond  the  edge  of  the  bait.  In  addition,  I 
tSKC  a  packing  needle  and  fine  twine,  and  tie  the  links  to  the  bait. 
By  adopting  this  course  I  make  an  attractive  and  armored  bail,  with 
hooks  partially  concealed,  and  an  almost  invisible  snood.  Tackle 
rigged  in  this  way  possesses  great  strength,  for  the  last  time  I  was 


16B  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAS  I". 

iishing  at  Mayport  I  captured  two  sharks,  one  seven  and  the  other 
nine  feet  in  lenajth,  on  my  tarpon  rig. 

In  August  last,  1  was  fishing  near  my  friend  P.,  and  hooked  a 
large  tarpon,  and  after  a  long  and  exciting  tussle  the  fish  was  dis- 
posed to  yield.  I  requested  P.  to  come  on  board  and. use  the  grains. 
lie  complied,  and  as  I  was  cautiously  bringing  the  silver  beauty  to 
the  side  of  the  boat  the  hooks  tore  out,  and  he  settled  to  the  bottom 
like  a  log.  P.  left  me;  I  did  not  break  a  commandment,  but  seated 
myself  in  the  cockpit  of  the  boat,  held  my  peace,  filled  my  pipe  and 
indulged  in  a  smoke. 

P.  returned  to  his  boat,  and  soon  after  shouted  that  he  had  "made 
a  discovery."  I  questioned  him  regarding  it,  but  he  told  me  "  to 
wait  and  he  would  make  a  tackle  to  capture  the  artful  dodgers."  A 
few  days  later  he  visited  me  and  exhibited  "his  new  rig,"  which 
consisted  of  a  dog  chain  two  feet  long.  To  the  links  of 
the  chain  he  had  fastened  seven  copper  wire  loops,  and  to  each 
of  the  loops  he  soldered  a  hook.  He  proceeded  to  Mile  Point, 
opened  a  large  mullet  from  vent  to  gills,  passed  swivel  end  of 
chain  out  of  mouth  of  bait,  a/id  to  it  attached  his  line.  The 
balance  of  the  chain  he  stowed  away  in  the  belly  of  the 
fish,  leaving  the  points  of  the  hooks  protruding  fr^m  the  incision, 
and  to  keep  everything  ^V^  situ  he  took  a  number  of  turns  around 
the  body  of  the  fish  with  strong  thread.  The  bait  was  appropriated 
by  a  tarpon,  and  during  the  head-shaking  process  the  end  of  the 
chain  escaped  from  its  place  of  confinement,  twitched  about  the 
fish's  head,  and  the  lower  hook  entered  on  the  outside  below  the 
gills.  After  a  struggle  P.  beached  a  tarpon  weighing  125  pounds. 
An  examination  established  the  fact  that  one  of  the  upper  hooks  had 
taken  a  slight  hold  in  one  lip,  and  had  held  long  enough  for  the 
"  skirmishing  hook  "   to  enter. 

P.  tried  another  experiment,  that  of  attaching  four  piano  wire  snoods 
eighteen  to  twenty-four  inches  long,  to  a  swivel,  and  to  each  snood 
was  attached  a  large  sized  hook.  He  opened  a  mullet  as  above  ; 
passed  swivel  through  mouth  of  bait,  and  stowed  the  hooks  in  belly 
leaving  points  exposed,  and  secured  the  hooks  by  wrapping  bait  Tirith 
thread.     He  was  rewarded  with  a  bite,  and  landed  a  tarpon  six  feet 


Fl.-HLS    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    (30AST.  169 

eleven  inches  in  length,  weighing  198  pounds.  It  was  found  that 
one  of  the  hooks  had  a  slight  hold  in  mouth,  and  that  one  of  the 
<<  skirmishers  "  had  switched  round  and  entered  the  back  of  the  fish 
below  the  head,  and  held  him.  Tarpon  fishing  is  in  its  infancy,  and 
we  trust  that  some  of  your  piscatorial  experts  will  invent  appropriate 
tackle,  try  tarpon  fishing,  and  teach  us  greenhorns  how  to  capture 
th*^^"*      Thpv  offpr  a  fine  field  for  '^xprnment.. 

Tarpon  seem  to  confine  themselves  to  a  fiflh  diet,  and  I  have  yet 
to  hear  of  one  noticing  a  crab  bait.  The  bait  universally  used  is  a 
portion  of,  or  a  whole,  mullet.  On  one  occasion  my  friend.  Dr.  F. , 
was  fishing  for  large  mouthed  bass  at  the  head  of  the  Homosassa 
Hiver,  and  as  they  would  not  rise  to  a  fly,  he  used  a  minnow  for 
bait.  He  soon  ascertained  that  he  had  about  six  lineal  feet  of  tar- 
pon at  the  other  end.  At  first  the  fish  paid  no  attention  to  the  trac- 
tion of  a  light  split  bamboo  trout  rod,  but  he  ultimately  started  off 
at  lightning  speed,  the  reel  humming  as  it  never  did  before,  and  tl  • 
Doctor  was  minus  a  leader.  He  rigged  his  line  again,  used  a  min- 
now as  bait,  made  a  cast,  got  a  strike,  and,  to  his  astonishment  and 
disgust,  another  tarpon  had  appropriated  the  bait,  and  in  an  instant 
he  was  minus  his  tackle.  From  that  time  to  the  present  the  Doctor 
has  refrained  from  using  minnows  for  bait  where  tarpon  exist. 

Nearly  two  years  since  your  valued  correspondent,  "M.,"  was 
trolling  with  a  spinner  near  Sannibal  Island  for  channel  bass,  and 
toward  evening  he  found  that  he  had  hooked  a  larger  fish  than  he 
bargained  for.  After  a  tussle  the  fish  was  landed,  and  it  proved  to 
be  a  tarpon  weighing  thirty-eight  pounds.  Last  summer,  I  had  a 
large  and  strong  spoon  bait  made  by  Hill  &  Co.,  of  Grand  Rapids, 
Michigan.  I  only  used  it  on  two  occasions  but  failed  to  secure  a 
strike.  Next  summer  I  propose  testing  it  again,  for  I  feel  assured 
that  the  silver  king  cannot  resist  such  an  attractive  lure. 
^The  capture  of  the  noble  tarpon  is  worthy  of  the  notice  of  experts, 
and  if  they  wish  an  exciting  experience,  a  new  revelation,  I  would 
advise  them  to  visit  southeastern  or  southwestern  portions  of  the 
State  during  the  winter,  or  the  lower  St.  Johns  during  August  and 
September.  If  they  should  engage  in  tarpon  fishing  in  this  river> 
whilst  waiting  for  a  bite  they  can  indulge  in  the  capture  of  channel 

1121 


170  FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

l>;^^.>.  wc'ighiiig  Irom  lueiily  lu  sixty  puiinds  ;  or  if  they  fish  at  the 
Jetties  they  can  kill  time  by  landing  sheepshead,  cavalli,  sea  troutl 
and  medium-sized  bass. 

As  yet,  no  one  in  this  section  except  myself  has  attempted  uie  cap- 
ture of  a  tarpon  with  a  ro^  and  reel ;  and  thus  far   I   have  been  so 
fortunate  as  not  to  hc^k  one  with  tuis  description  of  tackle.  Anothe 
summer,  I  will  destroy  several  first-class  heavy  bass  rods  or  capture 
one  of  thesilvei     Sgs  with  rod,  reel,  and  Cuttyhunk  line. 

Tarpon  fishing  will  open  a  new  field  worthy  of  the  notice  of  pis- 
catorial experts.  At  present,  this  sport  is  in  its  infancy,  but  it  ia 
probable  that  the  time  will  arrive,  when  we  shall  succeed  in  captur- 
ing the  silver  beauties  in  greater  number  than  in  the  past.  What  is 
required  for  the  successful  capture  of  these  fish,  is  a  double  spring 
hook,  eighteen  inches  in  length,  and  so  arranged  that  the  hooks  can 
be  closed  ;  a  half  mullet  securely  attached,  and  when  the  bait  is 
interfered  with,  a  catch  or  ring  shall  be  displaced  and  the  hooks  sep- 
arated to  a  distance  of  at  least  eighteen  inches.  With  such  a  rigr 
these  fish  can  be  captured  ;  and  the  question  arises  who  will  inven^ 
and  make  a  spring  hook  adapted  to  tne  capture  of  the  silver  kings 
The  southwest  coast  will  soon  be  opened  up  by  railroads  and  steam_ 
boats,  and,  as  many  fishermen  will  visit  that  section,  tackle  for  tar. 
pon  fishing  will  be  required  and  it  should  be  supplied. 

As  a  game  fish,  the  silver  kings  have  no  equal  ;  in  their  lightning- 
like  dashes  for  liberty,  they  excel    anything  wearing   scales,  and  as 
vaulters  they  cannot  be  equalled.     I  write  eulogistically  of  the  tar- 
pon, for  he  and  I  have  had  more  than  one  tussle.      In  an  article  in  a 
recent  number  of  a  contemporary,  a  gentleman  offered  to  pay  for  an 
excursion  ticket  to   Florida,  and  three  months  hotel  bill,  to  any  bne 
who  would  land  a  tarpon  with  a  rod  and  reel.  My  impression  is,  that 
the  gentleman  making  the  offer  "  has  been  there,"  and  had  his  "  fing- 
ers burnt."    In  Orvis  and  Cheney's  new  book  entitled  ''  Fishing  with 
a  fly,"  Dr.  Henshall  informs  us  that  "  the  capture  of  the  salmon  is  an 
epic  poem,  and  the  taking  of  the  trout  an  idyl,"  but  we  opine  that  if 
he  found  a  seven-foot  tarpon  on  the  end  of  his  line  and  succeeded  m 
landing  the  vaulter,  that  he  would  describe  the  operation  as  a  tragic 
to  poem. 


CHAl  TIE  xin. 


THE  FISHING    GROUNDS    OF    FLOFJD A— TACKLE  AND 

LURKS. 


By  T>R.  C.  J.  Kenwoithy. — Al     Feesco. 


In  Florida,  as  elsewhere,  almost  any  hotel  and  boarding-house 
keeper  who  resides  near  a  creek,  river  or  lake  refers  in  laudatory 
terms  to  the  fishing.  The  majority  of  such  statements  should  be  re- 
ceived cum  grano  sails.  As  a  rule,  good  fishing  cannot  be  secured 
near  large  cities  or  where  fishermen  use  seines  and  cast  nets. 

Jacksonville  is  the  objective  and  distributing  point  of  the  State, 
but  fishing  near  by  is  poor,  very  poor.  At  the  mouth  of  St.  John's 
River  *twenty-five  miles  below  Jacksonville,  fair  fishing  can  be  se- 
cured. Ten  days  since  my  friend.  Col.  H.,  spent  a  day  at  this  point. 
He  used  an  eight-ounce  split  bamboo  and  landed  210  sea  trout,  bass 
and  sheepshead.  He  fished  again  on  Monday  and  landed  sixty.  On 
Friday  last  Arno  and  his  partner  (professional  fishermen)  caught, 
with  Japan  cane  rods,  130  strings  of  fish,  and  on  Saturday  110 
strings.  A  "  string  "  of  fish  in  this  market  consists  of  one  or  more 
fish  weighing  about  four  pounds. 

As  yet  no  ohc  has  tried  fly  fishing  for  sea  trout  and  channel  bass 
in  the  creeks  emptying  into  the  lower  St.  J  ohn's  River^  but  we  are 
of  the  opinion  that  they  will  seize  the  feathery  lure  as  well  as  on  the 
southwest  coast.  Fair  accommodations  can  be  obtained  at  Mayport 
and  Pilot  Town  at  two  dollars  per  day  or  ten  dollars  per  week.  In 
some  of  the  creeks  tributary  to  the  St.  John's  River,  between  Jack- 
sonville and  Sandf  ord,  bream,  large-mouthed  bass  and  pickerel  can  be 
caught  in  great  members.  In  January  and  February  the  bass  will 
take  a  spoon  or  fly.     In  the  upper  St.  John's  (above  Enterprise)  and 


172  FISHES    OF   THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    CO  VST. 

its  tributary  streams  and  lakes,  the  fisherman  will  soon  be  surfeited 
in  capturing  large-mouthed  bass.  But  as  there  are  no  hotels  and 
l)oardhig  houses,  and  as  the  water  is  generally  bounded  by  broad 
marshes,  persons  will  be  compelled  to  use  a  boat  large  enough  for 
camping  purposes. 

At  St.  Augustine  there  are  a  number  of  excellent  hotels,  but  the 
fishing  is  poor  when  compared  with  streams  further  south.  At  New 
Smyrna  the  fishing  is  fair,  and  for  further  information  I  will  refer 
the  reader  to  the  interesting  articles  in  The  Angler  by  **  S.  C.  C." 
At  this  point  there  is  a  new  hotel  and  several  boarding-houses; 
board  from  eight  to  sixteen  dollars  per  week  for  permanent  boarders. 

Indian  River  can  be  reached  at  Sand  Point  or  Rock  Ledge  by 
steamers  on  St.  John's  River,  and  a  short  trip  overland.  Twice  each 
month  Captain  Henderson  will  make  trips  from  this  city  to  Indian 
River  with  his  new,  comfortable  and  safe  sharpie,  sixty-five  feet 
long  and  nearly  fifteen  tons  measurement.  I  have  not  fished  the 
lower  end  of  the  Indian  River,  but  from  reliable  information  ob- 
tained from  many  friends  I  am  convinced  fishermen  will  not  be  dis- 
appointed if  they  visit  this  locality.  If  disappointed,  it  would  be  agree- 
ably so  in  finding  such  a  great  variety  of  fish  and  in  such  immense 
numbers.  At  Lake  Worth,  a  few  miles  further  south,  in  the  lake  or 
at  the  inlet,  excellent  fishing  will  be  found.  Fair  accommodations 
can  be  secured  at  various  points  on  the  river,  but  the  best  course 
that  can  be  adopted  by  fishermen  would  be  the  chartering  of  a  sail- 
boat, with  a  good  captain,  at  Sand  Point  or  Rock  Ledge.  This  could 
be  avoided  by  taking  passage  with  Captain  Henderson  on  his 
Sharpie.  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  a  steamboat  is,  or  will  soon 
be,  running  on  the  Indian  River. 

If  a  fisherman  wishes  to^capture  large-mouthed  bass  until  he  is 
surfeited,  let  him  visit  Kessemmee  City,  secure  a  boat,  descend  the 
Kessemmee  River,  and  he  will  isoon  be  surfeited  with  the  *'  big- 
mouths."  But  if  the  angler  expects  to  meet  with  the  pluck  and 
fight  of  the  small-mouthed  bass  of  the  North  he  will  be  mistaken. 

If  the  fisherman  is  disposed  to  enjoy  a  sail  and  explore  the  interior 
of  the  State,  let  him  ship  a  suitable  boat  to  Kessemmee  City  by 
steamboat  and  ralroad  ;  launch  the  boat,  doscend  the  Kessemmee 


FISHES    OF    THE   EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  173 

River,  iskirt  the  southwest  shore  of  Lake  Ochechobee  ;  enter  and 
pass  through  the  canal  to  the  Cullowahatchin  River  and  descend 
this  stream  to  Charlotte  Harbor, 

In  the  streams  along  the  coast  between  St.  Marks  and  Cedar  Keys 
the  fisher  will  find  a  piscatorial  incognito.  The  coast  is  shoal  and 
can  be  navigated  in  a  small  boat.  The  streams  are  numerous,  and 
excellent  camping-grounds  will  be  found  on  their  banks.  The  shoals 
waters  along  the  coast  abound  with  ducks,  the  shores  with  beach 
birds,  and  the  land  with  deer  and  turkeys.  All  the  streamy  abound 
with  black  bass  (southern  trout),  channel  bass,  cavalli,  sheepshead, 
bream  and  sea  trout.  On  these  streams  a  fly  rod  would  be  found 
very  useful.  As  the  coast  referred  to  is  not  inhabited,  parties  visit- 
ing it  must  provide  for  the  inner  man. 

At  Cedar  Keys  fair  fishing  can  at  times  be  obtained.  On  one  oc- 
casion during  a  forenoon  I  landed  383  pounds  of  sea  trout  at  this 
point.  Alfred  Jones,  formerly  of  Homosassa,  has  opened 'a  house 
at  Scale  Key,  distant  tw^o  or  three  miles  from  Cedar  Keys.  At  Car- 
digan's Reefs,  a  short  row  from  the  house,  fair  channel  bass,  sea 
trout,  sheepshead  and  blackfish  fishing  can  be  secured.  The  able 
New  York  steamer  Eliza  Hancox,  Captain  Post,  has  been  placed  on 
the  route  between  Cedar  Keys  and  Tampa,  and  travelers  will  be 
pleased  with  the  accommodations  on  this  able  boat. 

Homosassa,  the  sportsman's  paradise,  has  been  patronized  in  the 
past  by  hundreds,  but  the  old  building  has  been  destroyed  by  fire. 
The  fishing  is  good,  but  Mother  Jones'  table  and  her  clean  soft  beds 
are  wanting.  A  new  hotel  has  been  erected  at  Anclote,  and  much 
has  been  written  about  the  salt  water  fishing  at  this  point,  but  I 
must  confess  that  I  could  not  find  the  "superior"  part  of  it.  Lake 
Butler,  a  f-hort  distance  from  the  hotel,  affords  good  fishing  for  black 
bass.  On  several  occasions  I  endeavored  to  find  good  fishing  at 
Clear  Water  Harbor,  but  failed.  At  St.  John's  Pass  I  found  fair 
sbi'^'TislieadiTii;. 

Much  has  been  written  about  the  superior  fishing  at  Tampa  Bay 
but  I  was  disappointed.  At  the  oyster  bank  off  Point  Gadsden,  nine 
miles  from  Tampa,  f air  sheepsheading  can  be  secured.    At  the  mouth 
of  the  Hillsboro  River  at  Tampa,  on  the  young  flood,  sheepshead 


174:  FISHES   OF   THE   EAST   ATLANTIC   COAST. 

and  pea  trout  can  be  captured.  When  I  fished  at  this  spot,  wind 
bait  and  tackle  were  wrong,  and  I  failed  to  capture  a  scaie.  A.t 
the  wreck  of  the  steamer  BL  M.  Cool,  opposite  the  mouth  of  Old 
Tampa  Bay,  fair  fishing,  more  especially  for  grouper,  will  be  found. 

At  Long  Boat  Inlet,  Sarasota  Bay,  good  fishing  will  be  found.  At 
the  mouth  of  Sara<^ota  Pass,  channel  bass  and  sheepshead  can  be 
captured.  My  friend  Dr.  Ferber  informed  me  that  he  fished  a  pool 
in  Billy  Bow-Legs  Creek  (a  tributary  of  this  bay)  and  hooked  ca- 
yalli  on  tte  fly  at  every  cast.  Three  years  since  a  friend  captured 
a  great  number  of  Spanish  mackerel,  trolling  with  a  spoon,  in  Little 
Sarasota  Bay.  At  Casey's  Pass,  the  southerly  outlet  of  the  last- 
named  bay,  good  sport  can  be  obtained  in  the  way  of  catching 
grouper,  channel  bass  and  sea  trout. 

South  of  Casey's  Pass  is  Kettle  Harbor,  a  point  where  sawfish  do 
most  congregate,  and  ihe  piscator  can  amuse  himself  catching  the 
sawyers.  In  addition  he  will  find  quantum  svfficit  of  sea  trout  and 
sheepshead.  At  Little  Gasparilla  Pass,  Charlotte  Harbor,  the  fish- 
ing will  be  found  A.  1.  On  the  young  flood  at  the  nortliorly  point 
of  Little  Gasparilla  Island,  cavalli,  channel  bass,  sea  trout,  and  bone- 
fish  can  be  captured  in  immense  numbers.  At  this  pouit  I  iiave 
hooked  these  fish  at  every  cast  and  reeled  them  in  until  my  arms 
a.ched.  Within  twenty  yards  of  the  entrance  will  be  found  a  bluff, 
shelly  shore,  which  extends  to  the  south  for  over  a  hundred  y.irds 
-and  at  this  place  at  any  stage  of  tide  sheepshead  ranging  from  two 
to  four  pounds  can  be  landed  as  fast  as  hooks  can  be  bailed.  Cruis- 
ing about  on  the  sand  bar  on  the  southerly  side  of  the  pass  I  noticed 
large  channel  bass.  I  waded  out  to  where  the  water  Was  knee-deep, 
cast  my  bait  near  the  fish,  and  instantly  the  music  would  commence 
In  the  centre  of  this  island  is  a  fresh  water  lagoon,  where  excellent 
drinking  water  can  be  obtained. 

At  any  of  the  passes  at  Charlotte  Harbor  excellent  fishing  will  be 
found.  At  Punta  Rassa,  which  can  be  reached  by  steamship  fronr 
Cedar  Keys,  fair  accommodations  can  be  secured  at  the  residence 
of  the  telegraph  operator  or  at  Jacob  Summerlin's  house.  The  dock 
at  this  point  is  the  paradise  of  "sheepsheading."  At  this  place  your 
correspondent  "M."  lauded  fifty-six  sheepshead  in  sixty  minutes.  This 


F.SHES    OF    'iHE    EAST    ATLAIsTIC    COAST.  175 

may  be  considered  a  "fish  story,"  but  to  do  away  with  the  improba- 
bility I  may  remark  that  "M."  had  a  man  to  bait  his  lines  and  un- 
hook the  fish.  Those  who  know  "M."  will  receive  his  statement 
unquestioned ;  but  to  doubters  I  will  say  that  my  friend  Dr.  Lewis 
of  Philadelphia,  stood  by  and  timed  our  mutual  friend  "M." 

If  the  fisherman  is  disposed  to  try  conclusions  ^rith  large  game, 
be  can  fish  from  the  end  of  the  dock  and  hitch  on  to  large  jewfish  and 
shark.  TV  ith  a  boat  and  spinner  large  numbers  of  channel  bass  can 
be  captured  by  trolling.  At  this  point  "M."  hooked  on  spoon  bait 
and  landed  a  juvenile  tarpon  weighing  thirty-eight  pounds. 

By  ascending  the  Calloosahatchie  River  above  the  islands  the  fish- 
f^rman  will  reach  the  heme  of  the  cavalli  and  tarpon.  If  the  fisher- 
man is  disposed  to  lay  the  foundation  for  a  camp-fire  yarn,  let  him 
provide  himself  w  ith  a  harpoon  spear,  ]  00  yards  of  whale  line  and  a 
staunch  boat.  By  keeping  his  eyes  open  he  will  see  devil  fish  from 
fourteen  to  twenty  feet  in  width  sporting  in  the  bay.  They  can 
be  approached  and  harpooned.  If  struck  the  ball  will  open,  and 
the  occupants  of  the  boat  will  enjoy  a  ride  without  raising  an 
ashen  breeze. 

South  of  Punta  Rassa  is  Estero  Bay,  where,  in  addition  to  the 
small  fry  previously  referred  to,  tarpon  and  sawfish  revel  in  all 
their  primitive  ignorance  of  fishermen,  steamboats  and  artificial 
baits.  Those  who  visit  this  bay  should  not  fail  to  ascend  Cork- 
screw River  and  enjoy  the  fishing,  and  deer  and  turkey  shooting. 
In  this  river  tarpons,  the  silver  kings,  exist  in  countless  numbers. 

At  Gorden's  Pass  twenty-eight  miles  south  of  Punta  Rassa  will 
be  found  a  sportsman's  paradise  with  fish  galore;  good  oysters, 
ducks,  beach  birds,  deer,  and  bear.  South  of  this  point  to  North 
Cape  Sable  any  of  the  inlets,  rivert?,  or  creeks,  will  furnish  unequal- 
led piscatorial  sport.  From  reliable  information  and  actual  obser- 
vation, I  have  no  hesitation  in  asserting  that  for  number  and  variety 
of  fish,  the  lower  Indian  River,  and  many  points  on  the  southwest 
coast  of  Florida  excel  any  other  portion  of  the  world. 

In  many  of  the  interior  lakes  large  mouthed  bass  and  bream  exist 
in  great  numbers,  but  they  afford  but  poor  sport.  After  the  first 
effort  the  former  give  up,  and  come  in  like  a  log  of  wood.     In  the 


176  FISHKS    OF    THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST. 

lakes  and  streams  of  the  central  portion  of  the  State,  war-mouthed 
perch  from  one  to  three  pounds  will  be  found,  and  for  fighting 
qualities  they  can  be  recommen:led.  My  only  experience  in  fishing 
in  the  western  portion  of  the  State  was  at  Apalachicola  in  1844, 
when  I  captured  my  first  channel  bass  ;  at  that  time  the  fishing  wa& 
excellent. 

To  properly  enjoy  fishing  on  the  southwest  coast,  a  party  of 
from  two  to  four  should  charter  a  small  sloop  or  schooner  of  'from 
five  to  six  tons  burthen  at  Cedar  Keys.  The  cost  of  the  craft  will 
be  from  five  to  six  dollars  per  day;  and  this  will  include  the  cap- 
tain with  man  or  boy,  one  small  boat,  stove,  crockery,  cooking 
utensils  and  bedding.  Party  chartering  boat  to  provide  provisions. 
If  party  consisted  of  four,  the  expense  should  not  exceed  ten  dollars 
per  day. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  making  a  few  remarks  regarding  fly  fishing 
in  Florida  and  will  quote  from  my  article  published  in  "  Fishing  with 
the  Fly." 

"  The  votaries  of  the  rod  and  reel  have  overlooked  an  important 
field  for  sport;  for,  in  my  opinion  no  portion  of  the  United  States 
offers  such  advantages  for  fly  fishing  as  portions  of  Florida  during 
the  winter  months.     The  health  of  the  Stale  is  beyond  cavil  or  dis- 
pute;  the  climate  is  all  the  most  fastidious  can  ask;  there  is  almost 
a  total  absence  of  insect  pests,  and  last  though  not   least,  a  greater 
variety  of  fish  that  will  take  the  fly,  than  in  any  other  section  of 
the  Union.     My  friend  Dr.  Ferber,  on  his  return  from  the  south- 
west coast  in  April  last  visited  me,  and  stated  that  he  had  caught 
on  that  coast   with   artificial   flies    eleven  distinct   species  of   fish  ^ 
and  I  can  add  five  species,  making  sixteen  which  can  be  captured 
with  the  feathery  lure." 

"Instead  of  wading  icy-cold  and  over  fished  brooks,  tearing 
clothes  and  flesh  creeping  through  briars  and  brush,  and  being  sub- 
jected to  the  sanguinary  attentions  of  the  mosquitoes,  and  black 
flies,  in  bringing  to  creel  a  few  fingerlings,  in  Florida,  the  angler 
can  cast  his  fly  from  a  sandy  beach  or  boat  inhale  an  invigorating 
atmosphere,  bask  in  the  sunshine,    and  capture   specimens   of   the 


FISHES    OF   THE    EAST    ATLANTIC    COAST.  177 

finny   tribe,  the   weight   of  which  can    be   determined   by    pounds 
instead  of  ounces." 

With  regard  to  tackle,  I  may  remark,  that  the  game  fish  of 
Florida  are  uneducated,  and  make  no  distinction  between  a  mist- 
colored  leader  and  a  clothes  line.  The  great  desideratum  for  Florida 
fishing  is  strength  of  tackle — stout  lines  and  large  hooks.  A  heavy 
bass  rod  is  all  important;  if  fly  fishing  is  indulged  in  the  rod  should 
not  be  less  than  eight  ounces.  As  the  fish  are  not  particular,  ex- 
pensive flies  need  not  be  used.  On  the  southwest  coast  spoon  bait 
are  used  to  a  great  extent;  I  have  tested  many  spoons  and  spinners, 
but  those  made  by  L.  S.  Hill  &  Co.  of  Grand  Rapid  Mich,  suit 
me  best.  These  baits  should  be  purchased  from  the  manufacturers, 
and  they  be  requested  to  add  stronger  hooks  to  the  small  sizes,  and 
nstead  of  treble  to  apply  double  hooks.  For  fisliing  in  this  State, 
I  would  recommend  No.  1,  2,  2|  and  3.  For  sea  trout,  Hill's  "  trout 
and  bass  fly"  would  be  found  an  attractive  bait.  For  hand-line 
fishing,  resident  experts,  use  cable  laid  cotton,  and  braided  cotton 
lines.  Unless  for  fly  fishing  strong  and  cheap  tackle  is  all  that  is 
required.  Lines  and  hooks  suitable  for  ordinary  fishing  can  be 
purchased  in  this  city. 


ABBEY  &IMBRIE, 


Manufacturers  of 


FnEnSHII&TACKLE 

48  Maiden  Lane,  New  York, 


Particular  attention  given  to  the  manufacture  of  j 

w    RODS,  REELS,  UNES,  Etc, 

y/l     MARK. 


BAMBOO  AND  GREEXBEART  CHUM  RODS, 

S±;eeIL  'F±r\ro±»  IR/eels. 

JExtra  Strong  Gut,  Hand  Lines  for 

TMPi,miiBASS,SliPliD,Ek 


If  your  dealer  does  not  keep  our  goods  in  stock  or  will  not  order  them  fo 
you,  send  us  50  cents  for  our  120  page  Illustrated  Catalogue  and  Price  List. 


JM. 


THOS.  J.  CONROY 

Manufacturer,  Importer,  Wholesale  &  Retail  Dealer  in 

FINE  FISHING  TACKLE, 

65  Fulton    Street,  New  York. 


New  Styles  <>t  my  Cr-lchnted  Hexagonal  Bamboo  Rods.  New 
patterns  Steel  Pivot  muUiplv^n^  R^els  in  Aluminium.  Brass,  German 
Silver  and  Rubber.  '  Ciittyhunk"  Reel  Lines  all  length  and  sizes, 
Harrison's  Celebrated  Knobbed  and  Needle  Eved  O'Shaughnessy 
Hooks.  Hooks  on  Brass  wire  and  Plain  Wire  Snelb.  Artificial 
Flies  and  Baits  m  Great  varietv  and  a  large  assortment  of  tackle  of 
eyery  description    suitable  for  the  Inland  and  Coast  Fishing. 

SOLP   AGENTS   FOR 

mitchelus  patent  butt  fly  bods. 

Tents,  Camp  Cots,  Canip  Stoves,  Jack  Lamps,  Tackle  Cases,  Etc. 
My  long  experience  m  fitting  ou'  patties  for  Florida  enables  me 
from  simply  knowing  the    points  to  be  visited,  to  select  such  articles 
as  are  best  adapti  d  to  the  locations. 

Send  15  cents  for  illustrated  Catalogue  and   Hand    Book  of  Fish- 
ng  Tackle  with  supplement. 


ib*^' 


HEN^RY  C.  SQXJIRES, 

WHOLESALE  AND  RETAIL  DEALER  IN 

Guns,Fisliirif  Tackle, Lawn  Ieni?,PleaMe  Boah  &  Canoes. 


AND  EVERYTHING    FOR  THE   FOREST,   FIELD   OR  STREAM. 

4 

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^_j,  _,    ^tt^itr '  -r     f^"^             -f^rssii.  '7?fe"*y)jj^^$^''jsakJL      ^  J^MBt^HWjR!jBK?l 

^8 

^BKVjfei|iw|M 

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/      ' ' 

SFORI  SMKN'S  SUI'PLIES  OF  KVKRY  DESCIUPTION. 

Camping:  Goods,  Rubber  Goods,  Sportsmen's  Clothingr,  Boots 
and  Shoes,  and  Ammunition  of  all  kinds. 
178    BROADWAY,   NEW  YORK  CITY. 


SPECIAL  TO  ANGLERS, 


THE  AMERICAN  ANGLER.— A  weekly  journal  devoted  solely  to  fish,  fish- 
ing and  fish  culture,  is  published  oji  Saturday  of  each  week.  Subscription  $3.00  a 
year.      Ten  cents  per  copy. 

rORTRAITS  OF  FISHES— Printed  on  tinted  Bristol  boards  7  x  11  inches. 
They  are  sixty  in  number  ;  twenty-three  are  engravings  of  those  killed  in  fresh 
water  and  thirty-seven  of  the  salt  water  species  The  fresh  water  series,  postage 
paid,  $2.00  ;  salt  water,  $3.50  ;  whole  series,  $5.00  ;  single  copies,  10  cents.  A 
handsome  portfolio,  Russian  leather,  $1.25  post  paid. 

FISHES  OF  THE  EAST  FLORIDA  COAST.— In  pamphlet  form,  twelve 
engravings,  post  paid,  25  cents. 

THE  ANGLERS'  SCORE  BOOK.— With  blanks  and  stubs  for  recording 
scores  of  fish;  giving  blanks  for  date,  name  of  water,  species  of  fish  caught,  num- 
ber, weight  of  largest,  total  weight,  size  of  largest,  baits  used,  state  of  water, 
wind  and  weather      Paper  cover,  10  cents  ;  cloth,  25  cents  post  paid. 


The  American  Angler, 

252  Broadway,  New  York. 


CLOTH  of  GOLD 


Our  Cigarettes  cannot   be  surpassed.     If  you  do  not  use  them,  a  trial  will 
convince  you  that  they  have  no  equal.     Two  hundred  millions  sold  in  1883. 

1  3  First  Pi  ze  Me  dais  jAwarded. 


WM.  S.  KIMBALL  &  CO., 


PHOTOGRAPHY    MADE    EASY, 

By  the  New  Dry  Plate  Process   No  Stains,  No  Trouble. 
Amateur  Outfits  in  (^reat  Variety  from  $10  upward 

Send  for  illustrated  catalogue  or  call  and  examine,  as  we  take  pleasure  in  showing 
our  goods.     We  are  sole  proprietors  of  THE  DETECTIVE  CAIVI  ERA. 


Patented  Jud.  2  id 
The  Lightest,  Neatest  and  most  Compact  (  amera  ever  made.     It  is   designed 
to  be  carried  in  the  hand,  and  used  without  either  tripod  or  focussing  cloth. tj 
Uescriptlve  Circular  mailed  on  Application. 

E.  &  H.  T.  ANTHONY  &  CO./ 
Forty  Tears  E6ta3)li8hed  in  this  line  of  huHness  691  Broadway    New  York, 


THE  SUPEKIORITY  OF  THE  CELEBEATED 

Hexagonal  Split  Bamboo  Fishing  Rods, 

MANUFACTUHED  BY 

BF.NiCHOLS,  153  Milk  Street,  Boston,  Mass., 

la  tividciit  from   the  fact   that  the   gentlemen   who  nse  tliem  are  enthusiastic  over  their  good 

qualities. 
Read  the  following  letter: 

South  Kensington,  October  18,  1883. 
Dear  Sir  : — The  special  prize  of  £10  for  the  collection  of  Salmon  Rods  distinguished  more 
for  their  excellence  than  their  numbers,  has  been  awarded  to  you  by  the  Jury.  Mr.  Burdett 
Coutts,  who  offered  the  prize,  asked  me  this  morning  to  please  convey  to  you  his  compliments 
and  congi-atulations  and  says  he  is  greatly  pleased  that  his  prize  has  been  awarded  to  an  Ameri- 
can and  one  whose  rods  are  so  favorably  and  generally  known  as  yours. 
,To  B.  F.  Nichols,  Esq..  Boston,  Mass.'  *     W.  N.  COX,  U.  S.  Fish  Commission. 

[Copv  letter  received  October  31.]         Send  for  catalogue,  with  Massachusetts  Fish  and  Game 
Laws— FREE.     My  Goods  are  sold  in  New  York  City  by  HAWKS  &  OGILVY,  3oo  Broadway.. 


Split  Bamboo  Bass  and  Fly  Rods,  Flies  and  Fly  Books,  Artificial  Bait, 

Bait  Boxes,  Hooks,  Etc. 


w- 


W^^K '"  /iH^ 


:i^^^^i^^ 


r.l5/ltt(MbR&4sfTM 


Water-proof  Silk, Linen  and  Cotton  Lines,Reels,  Floats,  Bnskets.Si'Ti leers. Leaders 


lliL.. 


J9&K. 


IMPORTER    OF  T 

Fishing    Tackle.  | 

TROUT.  I 

BASS    AND    SALMON  I 

TACKLE,  I 

For  Brook,  River,  Lake 

AND 

Salt  Water 

FISHING. 


William  -Wurfflein, 

208  NOrt)i  Second  strojt,  Philadelphia,  Pa., 

Rods, 


"J 


J  Reels,    Lines,   Files, 
Hooks  and  Bait 

OF   EVERY    DESCRIPTION, 

Of  the  Latest  and  Most 

Improved   Styles,    in 

GREAT  VARIETY, 

AT  LOW  PRICES. 

jftS="Send  for  Price    List. 
Mention  American  Angleb. 


PHILADELPHIA 


FISHINGTACKLE  HOUSE, 


manufacturers  of 


FlsMng  Rods,  Lines,  Reels  and.  Tackle  of  Every  Description. 


Outfits  for  Florida  and  Other  Sea  Fishing  a  Specialty. 

.   6, 750  Fish   Hooka  are  pronounced  by    "Al  Fresco     the  best  hook  for 


Our  No. 
made.    We  make  a  specialty  of 


sea  fishing 


Hand-made  Fishing  Rods. 


Manufactured  from  the  celebrated  Bethabara  Wood,  they  are   stronger  than  the  Split  Bamboo, 
and  as  tough  and  elastic  aa  tempered  steel. 

J^"  We  are  making  an  improvement  on  Gimp  Snells.  Every  Fisherman  has  experienced  the 
difficulties  attending  the  use  of  Gimp,  Linen  or  Gut  for  this  purpose.  This  Snood,  being  a 
combination  of  braided  Linen  and  non-corro.^ive  Flexible  Wire,  etfoctually  prevents  it  from 
twisting  around  the  line,  and  makes  it  the  stronge.st  and  most  durable  Suell  in  the  market. 
Priceperdoxen  on  best  quality  Hooks  for  Weakfi.sh,  7o  cents.  Pickerel,  6o  cents.  Sea  Bass, 
6o  cents.  Fishing  Rods  and  Tackle  can  bo  sent  by  mail  at  Ic.  per  oz.,  and  registerod,  if  de- 
sired, at  lo  cents  additional.    G.5-pago  Illustrated  Price  List  of  Fishing  Tackle  sent  by  mail  for 

lo  cents  in  stamps.  A.  B.  SHIPLEY  &,  SON,  503  Commerce  Street, 

PHILADELPHIA,  PA, 


it.iTt 


^5508 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


